No choice left
by Lucrecia LeVrai
Summary: It's all about choices, love and conscience. Does Sephiroth have any regrets? Is he going to wake up, anyway? Peace between the two intelligent races hangs by a thread. Aeris, who has killed a man for the first time, struggles to stay true to her ideals
1. Chapter 1

"No choice left"

Disclaimer: Most of the characters are mine, apart from Sephiroth and Aeris.

Author's Notes: Finally! I've started to write a longer fic this time! The story begins just after the ending of FF7. Be aware that Sephiroth's the main character here, so if you don't like him at all, you're wasting your time reading this… And if you like Aeris… Hey, I'm not suggesting anything! Actually, the fic's going to be quite complicated and different from all those sweet Sephy/Aeris love stories, which are mostly adorable and cute, yet so unrealistic. I wanted to create something deeper, if only just slightly more reliable. I mean… are Sephiroth and Aeris truly meant for each other? What if there was a second woman and a few extra problems for them to deal with?

Enjoy the story!

***

Chapter 1

With a loud scream he awoke from another nightmare, instantly bolting into a sitting position. Momentarily forgetting what he was dreaming about, in the next second he was on his back again, feeling completely exhausted, unable to move, unable to think. The fever made his lips pale and dry; there was also a glow in his green irises and his entire body shivered.

As Sephiroth fell down on his pillows, his eyelids suddenly became very heavy. For a long moment he was completely still, allowing random thoughts to run through his head in a chaotic manner. (Where am I? What happened? And why…) He forced himself to stay awake and reopen his eyes: he lay in the middle of a white-painted room, on a comfortable bed that vaguely smelled of flowers. Judging from the bright daylight, it had to be about noon. He could hear some birds singing in the distance.

Sephiroth wanted to raise his head to look around more carefully, however – to his extreme irritation – he noticed he couldn't perform even this simplest gesture. For a second an ice-cold feeling of panic overwhelmed him but he momentarily chased the terrifying thought away: no, I'm not paralyzed. He slightly moved his fingers to make himself sure.

The pain, which he ignored at first, was growing more intense with every second, to the point of being almost unbearable. Sephiroth blinked his eyes, feeling tears forming there against his own will. He felt a mixture of bewilderment and anger. Was he going to cry? Why? Wasn't he used to the pain? He tried to breathe slowly and it helped him a little.

He blinked his eyes, trying to raise his head once more. To no effect. It hurt so much that he eventually gave up, falling down on his pillows, exhausted. He didn't close his eyes, however, fighting off sleep, trying to pull his thoughts together. Why was it that difficult? He frowned, trying to remember anything apart from his dreams, anything that happened just before he was thrown into that constant stream of nightmares, which he knew were simply the real images of the past… his past, mostly.

(Cloud… the crater… I should be dead now, shouldn't I? But… is this how hell is supposed to look like?)

Though accurate details seemed to be very vague, Sephiroth recalled fighting against Cloud's party. He also remembered the final duel with his adversary. He winced at that thought.

(The duel… That's good! I couldn't even defend myself… And then… What happened next…?)

He remembered a huge ball of energy speeding in his direction. He remembered the satisfied expression on Cloud's face… Then there was nothing but a terrible pain and a silent prayer for a quick death. The last thing he remembered was whiteness, consuming everything around him… and suddenly he found himself here.

(Laying on a clean, soft bed… But how? Even if I survived by some miracle, who would want my recovery?)

Once more he attempted to lift his head to check whether his wrists were tied to the bed – and they weren't.

(That's absurd…) He instantly became irritated with himself. (And even if they were… It's not like I can stand up or anything...)

He knew he had to look pitiful at that moment. He frowned, suddenly hearing somebody's quiet footsteps outside and a rustle of opening the door. Ignoring the pain, with a lot of effort he managed to turn his head.

A small, delicate woman stepped into the room. She was still looking fairly young but judging from her deep, brown eyes she could be in her late forties as well. Noticing Sephiroth was awake, the woman froze for a second but almost instantly smiled. Sephiroth didn't smile back.

She came up to the bed, leaning over the man.

"How are you?" she asked, frowning in concern when he didn't answer "Are you all right, Sephiroth?" she finally repeated.

He slightly narrowed his eyes at hearing his name from a stranger; he was sure he had never met this woman before.

"Who are you?" he eventually asked, trying to sound as indifferent as possible.

"I'm Amyl van Drahne but you can use my first name only." she spoke, far too observant to miss his obvious distrust "It's alright, Sephiroth. I guess you can call me... a friend."

He didn't comment on that. She knows my name, he thought. (Which most probably means she knows also other things about me… like what I've tried to do with the Planet, for example… Meteor… What happened to the Meteor? …I wish I knew.)

"Where am I?" he asked instead.

"We're in a place known as Muar-Svyen-a-Tor, which in the common language means The-Tower-of-the-Seven-Seas. It's the capital of the Promised Land."

His eyes widened in disbelief.

WHAT!?

As self-possessed as he was, he didn't manage to conceal his utmost surprise. (…But I thought…) It has to be just some another nightmare, he resolved quickly. (It can't be happening, right?)

"I can see you're slightly confused about this, aren't you?" Amyl stated solemnly, sitting down on the edge of his bed "Let me explain a few important things, then. Yes, you were… mislead, Sephiroth, thinking that you are a Cetra. However, I'm sure that you know the truth about your parents now, am I right?"

He nodded, turning his head away, as far as his stiff muscles allowed, not wanting the woman to notice that his blue-green eyes were suddenly filled with regret and… sorrow.

"How would you know?" he asked

"And how would you?" she answered him with a question.

"Those dreams…" Sephiroth's voice trailed off.

Nightmares, actually…

"Then you see." Amyl nodded "More or less that's the reason how I know your name and I'm familiar with your past. As you might have already guessed, I'm also aware of your attempt to destroy the Planet." Sephiroth watched her close for any traces of hostility, yet he saw none, there was nothing but a strange mixture of interest and curiosity in Amyl's eyes "A failed attempt." she completed.

He shut his eyes briefly. (So it's over now… Jenova didn't have it her way. Neither had I… Maybe it's for the better…) he decided in his thoughts. He had so many unanswered questions and doubts… but he didn't feel like voicing them right now. The whole situation seemed to be more than awkward to him.

"What does it change?" he finally asked, keeping both his face and his voice emotionless, not allowing his bitterness to come through "Am I not supposed to be dead? Or at least dying… instead of lying in a clean bed somewhere in the Promised Land…? Sure you have some sense of… justice. Is that the way you treat…"

a murderer

"…somebody like me?" with some effort he raised a slender hand to his bandaged forehead, suddenly hesitating "Was that a healing spell?"

I didn't ask for your pity, he thought, lowering his arm.

"Actually…" Amyl said "We don't want you dead."

"We?"

"The seven members of the Cetra Council. I forgot to mention that I'm one of them." there was no vanity in her voice "Valagar, the head of the Council, needs to speak to you."

"And for what reason?" he wondered if anything could surprise him right now.

"You'll find out soon enough… but not today. I can see you still haven't recovered entirely." Amyl stood up. "Rest now. I'll come for you when you're ready." she moved her hand and whispered something very quietly.

Too tired to resist her spell, Sephiroth suddenly felt his eyes closing and before he could even realize what was happening, he fell asleep. Even more nightmares accompanied him this time.

***

"So." Xavier started, leaning his forearms on a marble balustrade "When are they leaving?"

"As soon as possible." Gustaw, who stood just behind him, answered "Probably in a week."

"Such a long journey…" Xavier sighed "We won't see them for at least ten years… And we won't even know whether they succeeded or not…"

"What are ten years compared to eternity…?" Gustav noticed philosophically "Patience is a virtue, my friend."

Xavier turned around to look at his companion "I guess you're right. However, it's not an ordinary task, so I imagine you can understand my anxiety."

"Valagar himself is leaving… there's no need to worry…"

Xavier snorted "Even you don't sound so sure about that. Actually, the fact that Valagar is leaving concerns me the most. What if something bad happens here in the meanwhile…? And most importantly: what if he…"

"…Dies?"

"Yes. You forgot it's THEM he'll have to face. And the last time we met one of their kind, we were almost entirely destroyed."

"That was two thousand years ago."

"Does it necessarily means we're wiser now? Or stronger?"

"We had our lesson. Now we're certain we cannot trust them, no matter what, which makes us somewhat better prepared. Besides, our fear is premature. Jenova could had been an outcast among them, have you ever considered that?"

"Do you want to say that maybe they're just a peaceful civilization…?" Xavier raised his thin, fair eyebrows.

"Don't let your prejudices make you blind." Gustav said, watching the sun lowering towards the horizon "Things are never entirely black or entirely white. Ha, I'm so wise, right?" he laughed bitterly "Speaking has always been so easy… it's practice that makes everything difficult."

"Which makes me glad I'm not going with them." Xavier murmured "Besides, I've got a bad feeling about this… and I don't trust that strange man, either… it's Sephiroth, right? He's not a Cetra! What makes him so special that Valagar wants him as a part of the team?"

"He used to be a brilliant strategist once, or so I've heard… He never lost a single battle."

"Impressive." Xavier shrugged "So he's exceptionally clever. Where's the point?"

"He's also said to be a warrior, an excellent one, that is. With a very strong magical talent for… a human. Isn't that enough for you, Xavier?"

Xavier raised his hand to his chin, narrowing his eyes. "Sounds perfect. But… Well… isn't he supposed to be insane? Isn't he the one who tried to destroy his home planet only a few weeks ago and somehow failed?"

Gustav shook his head. "Back then, I've heard the planet's terrified voice, too, and I don't know…" he paused "Valagar says he's just fine and that we should treat him as an equal…"

"Damn it!" Xavier exclaimed "Valagar can be so stubborn and irrational sometimes! Of all men in the universe, why this Sephiroth, with some mental problems and a strange past! There are thousands of equally talented people! You know as well as I do that Valagar's reasons had to be different!"

Gustav sighed heavily. "I can only assume it has something to with the fact that Sephiroth's not entirely human. He's partially one of them…"

Xavier was silent for a long while. "You mean…" he stammered "But that's just… How…? What do you mean?"

"Well, he's still human… mostly. I spoke with Amyl about a week ago and she told me he shares some Räelans genes – Jenova's genes, as a matter of fact. There's also quite a lot of mako in his veins… Which leaves him with more than fifty percent of human DNA, actually fifty-six, to be precise."

"And Valagar's convinced that we'll need his help." Xavier whispered. "Even though he's a half-Räelan…" He suddenly paused, since the thought struck him. The men were both quiet for a long moment. "Now I see." Xavier nodded thoughtfully "Judging from our first and only experience with them, the Räelans are quite unpredictable and very hard to get along with, so Valagar wanted to find someone who may be able to understand them at least a little more…"

"Exactly. Now it does make a perfect sense…"

"Yes, but I still have a feeling something's not right here… like we may have missed something."

Now it was Gustav's time to shrug. "As ridiculous as this whole idea may seem, I've always respected Valagar's wisdom and now I believe that his choice is right. And I'm sure Kyro and Movitriss can take care of everything. I still don't know about this Aeris Gainsborough but I was told she's a very dedicated and reliable person. Moreover, she's already agreed…"

***

Aeris lifted her head from a book. The letters danced before her eyes. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't concentrate on the novel anyway. Nothing could drag her thoughts from…

Again

…what Valagar had said. It seemed that the Promised Land was a lie, one big deception. She clearly remembered that those fake, naive dreams of the Promised Land were one of the very few things she could always hold on to as a child. Back then she believed her ultimate prize awaited her. She expected to find safety here. Among with some other things… like peace. Love. Happiness.

And this was so much like the Planet she had left. Sure, this place was beautiful. Sure, she had found safety and happiness here… but for how long?

It's happening again

She felt deceived, tricked. You lied to me, all of you, she thought, slamming the book shut. (Why don't you just let me alone now? Look at me, I was not born to be a warrior, let alone the martyr you want me to be. I can't fight and I'll never find a hint of pleasure in fighting. Yet I've played my part to the end. It's just that… right now I'm tired of everything. Is that so difficult for you to understand, Valagar?)

Suddenly she felt very guilty, so guilty that it even drowned out her sorrow. It wasn't Valagar's fault.

Whose fault was it, anyway?

And my murderer's still alive

She shivered, involuntarily biting her upper lip. Sephiroth still frightened her and she sincerely doubted it would ever change. The terrifying memories were still vivid in her mind. She knew what Valagar intended to tell him and what he was going to ask him for. And she suddenly realized she already knew Sephiroth's answer. Nobody can change that fast, she thought. Especially not somebody like him.

He's still a threat

(No, he isn't. He was mistaken. Angry. Confused.)

Just as I am now

(He's not a threat anymore.)

Oh really?

(Is insanity really a good enough excuse? Is the Council wrong? Valagar wasn't the one who died that day. He'll never understand what it feels like… That sword was cold, so damn cold…)

I'm scared. What if…?

Aeris lifted a slender hand to her pale, bleeding lip, which left small red spots on her flawless fingers. (Memories. I won't cry. I'm a warrior now, not a martyr.)

Valagar says I'm responsible for the future of the Promised Land. So is Sephiroth.

Burying her face in her hands, Aeris cried. What else could she do?

***

When Sephiroth woke up again, he sincerely hadn't the foggiest idea of how much time had passed. A day probably? He wasn't sure. It was early afternoon now.

He felt much better than before, still a little stiff and his limbs aching, yet he could actually move this time. He raised himself very slowly, sitting on the bed, resting his back against a soft, comfortable pillow. He could finally have a look around his room, noticing it was a bright, spacious chamber full of wooden furniture. There was even a fireplace in the corner but it seemed to be cold and unused, probably because – guessing from the opened window and the temperature inside – it was the middle of the summer.

Sephiroth got up, feeling slightly dizzy, but otherwise fine. The first thing he did was to go up to the window and open it wider. He looked outside… and froze.

No wonder it's called the Promised Land, he thought.

He spent almost half of his life traveling and became quite used to amazing places and spectacular sights. Yet still, experienced as he was, he found the view from the window impressive and literally breathtaking. There was a city spreading below his feet, overflowing with green, teeming with life. He could see narrow, winding streets and bridges made of white stone, hanging high above the ground. This place was just as opposite to Midgar as it could be. Magnificent. And above everything there was a clear, blue sky.

He rested his elbows on the broad sill, hanging his head down. He felt a gentle breeze caressing his cheeks, playing with his hair. So warm, so delicate…

He closed his eyes, suddenly not wanting to look at the city.

What am I doing here?

(Haven't I been seeking for the Promised Land, anyway…? For a different purpose, though… I devoted myself to something so… wrong. And was it truly for myself only? Revenge? Jenova?) He frowned. Anger flashed in his tranquil, blue eyes, instantly changing them into luminescent green. (Damn! I would kill that bitch if only I could!)

So betrayed and so deceived… The fact that Jenova was dead didn't make him feel any better.

(What was I thinking!? How could I ever believe her!?)

He felt like a fool, like an idiot. So cheated… Recently he had became such a proud person that admitting he had been wrong hurt him like hell. (I've made a fool of myself. Acted like a moron, killed for no apparent reason. Instead of killing Hojo in the first place, I did things that didn't need to be done, that shouldn't have been done…)

(What a damn irony… and I've found the Promised Land after all…) He smiled bitterly.

(Most probably to be expelled. What I did was wrong, at least perceived from a moral point of view. What does this Valagar want from me?) He looked down at his pale, slender hands. (Will they see the difference between Jenova and me? Probably not… She's not entirely dead as long as I live. I'm a part of her, right? And she was the worst enemy of the Cetra…)

(So now what? Am I going to be… judged? Punished? For all the things I did, willingly or not? Mostly willingly, though…)

He sighed. What was this oh-so-familiar feeling in his chest?

(…Am I feeling guilty…?)

…Guilty……?

(…Guilty for the people I didn't even know? They're simply faces without names to me and therefore I cannot feel sorry for them… Guilty for the people I knew? Guilty of murdering that bastard, ShinRa? Why should I feel sorry for killing him?)

It's more than just that and you know it…

(No, I don't regret anything… Anything at all… Only that… it was pointless, it really served no purpose… for I didn't feel happy back than, did I? And… they were ones of my kind, after all, weren't they…?)

Suddenly he heard the door being opened. The sound made him instantly turn around, fast enough to see Amyl entering the room. She looked quite different from what he remembered. Instead of wearing a simple long skirt, she was now dressed in a magnificent long dress and her hair looked much better than before, decorated with a jewel-decorated ribbon.

"Hi, how are you today?" she asked, clasping her hands in front of her waist. Her words reassured him that he slept for more than just a few hours "You can stand up and that's definitely a good sign!" perhaps the sentence was meant as a joke, because she smiled. "What about your chest?"

Sephiroth looked down, frowning. It still hurt but he had learned to ignore the pain.

"You'll be alright in a couple of days." Amyl continued, perhaps not interested in his answer "I took the bandage off your head because the wound has healed completely. Such a horrible gash and I guess it won't even leave a scar…" her voice trailed off for a second "So, how's your chest?"

"I'm fine." Sephiroth finally said.

Yeah, right…

Amyl nodded. "Just as I expected." her expression turned very serious "I'm glad to see you conscious and on your feet, because the Council awaits you."

"Right now?" he raised his eyebrows. I must look awful at the moment, he realized, looking at her fancy dress and golden necklace.

"There's a bathroom behind that door." she explained patiently "And a wardrobe with lots of different clothes right over there. Get dressed, please." she asked him "I'll wait for you downstairs."

"Downstairs? And how am I supposed to…"

"A guard will show you the way." she interrupted him

He frowned at her words, narrowing his aquamarine eyes. Amyl noticed that expression.

"Don't worry." she reassured him calmly "You acted reasonable during our last conversation so Valagar decided that you're not a prisoner. The guard's here only to help you."

He didn't answer, since he didn't believe her entirely.

"I shall leave you now." Amyl resisted the urge to comment on Sephiroth's obvious lack of trust "You don't have to hurry but remember that the Council is waiting."

He watched her going out of the room and closing the door behind her.

Great, he thought. Just great.

End of Chapter 1.

***

Author's Notes: And? Did you like it? Anybody wants more? It wasn't very dramatic but I assure you that the plot will thicken in time. I've almost finished the second chapter by now, so I guess I could post it fairly soon. The problem is, I really need to know whether you enjoyed the story or not, since I don't want to waste my time on a worthless fic that nobody would like to read.

Besides… writing English is sometimes so damn frustrating… for, you see, I'm a FOREIGNER, as you've already probably noticed. That's why the language used in this story sounds so simple. (Do you know how bad it feels? Having so much to say and such a short vocabulary!?) Anyway, sorry about those terrible grammar or spelling mistakes I've made; I can only hope they didn't make my story sound pitiful. Let me know if there are any unacceptable ones, perhaps I'll be able to avoid them in the future.

Please, REVIEW! Any constructive suggestions would be appreciated! C'mon! Just click that pretty REVIEW button down there! It doesn't take that much time to type a few letters!

(I hope I was being persuasive enough!)

Ah, and by the way: don't worry, 'cause the fifty-year-old Amyl is not the "second woman" I was referring to in my prologue. Sephy deserves something better, right? And don't be confused about the Räelans, either. As I've already said, everything will clear up in time.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I haven't bought Sephiroth or Aeris since the last chapter was posted and I don't own any other Squaresoft characters that may appear here.

Author's Notes: I'm more than happy to know somebody cares about this story. Many thanks for your reviews! Well, I guess my English's not that horrible if you managed to reach the end of the first chapter… I'm still not used to writing in this language, though. So expect more dialogues than action here, since it's the easiest thing to write… Oh, c'mon! Everybody loves dialogue, for it's also the easiest thing to read, right!?

A few words about the pairing: I can't tell you the story's ending already, now can I? Just keep in mind that the fact Aeris appears in this fic means something… OK…? So no matter what happens in the meanwhile, stay with me to the very end. Ah, and did I say something about things clearing up…? (sigh) Maybe it's going to be a very, very long story… Anyway, don't worry, since everything is planned in detail (and it's not that simple as it will sound in this part). You just have to be a little patient. Please, read this entire long chapter…

I changed the rating because there are two nasty words here – sorry, people, I really had to use them for building some tension/atmosphere. Finally, the last thing: (....) – those brackets are of course for characters' thoughts but I'm sure everybody has figured it out already. Just in case you were confused: the second ones … are also for thoughts, however, I use them only when I want to stress something or indicate characters' inner doubt.

Have fun reading this!

***

They expected a furious madman, chained and bounded, being forcibly dragged into the room by at least six fully armed guards. All they saw was a calm, composed human that entered the chamber only in Amyl's company. He was tall and slim; dressed in a snow-white shirt and black pants. Silver hair framed his pale face and his eyes seemed to be perfectly blue, with normal human pupils, but there was just something unnatural about them. He looked far too young for a thirty-year-old man and far too innocent for a mass-murderer, which slightly surprised almost all of the Council members. However, there was an unmistakable coldness in his expression, suggesting he was something more than just a pretty looking boy.

Totally aware of the fact that he was being watched from head to foot…

am I really that different?

…and not liking the feeling it gave him, Sephiroth raised one gloved hand to his chin, staring back at them. And only then did the members of the Council finally realized Sephiroth's hands were free. Movitriss gasped. Kyro reached for his sword, but Valagar was faster.

"I let him free." he spoke before somebody could react "He's not a prisoner anymore."

"Are you…" Illyssan started, narrowing her eyes.

"Yes, I'm sure." Valagar cut her short.

Sephiroth sensed the tension in the room and of course it didn't make him feel any better, when he already felt nervous, uncertain and awkward… like an outcast.

Well, isn't that familiar?

He wondered whether he was on their mercy now, noticing some of them were armed. It gave him a sense of humiliation, yet he had chosen to remain calm, deciding to wait and see, to forget about his pride for a moment. Of course he was able to control his expression very well. The Cetra could only see his complete indifference.

"Sephiroth, my name is Valagar." the head of the Council said "This is Illyssan and that's Movitriss. You've already met Amyl. The man over there is Gustav and next to him stands Kyro. And that's Xavier."

Some of the mentioned nodded politely. Some of them didn't. Sephiroth remained silent, he only watched them carefully, trying to figure out if they were a treat or not.

Two men, Xavier and Gustav, were already in their early fifties, most likely. Kyro was younger, much younger, probably still about twenty. Movitriss seemed to be in her late twenties and Illyssan looked as if she was nearing forty, judging from the small wrinkles that surrounded her eyes. They all wore fancy, expensive clothes, according to their position and high social status.

Sephiroth risked a quick look around the chamber, too. It was huge and spacious, devoid of any furniture, though brightly illuminated by the light that was falling inside through stained glass in many windows, leaving colorful images on a marble floor. He finally lifted his eyes and met Valagar's gaze.

Valagar looked quite different from the rest of the Council members. Firstly, he appeared to be much older than any of them, even compared with Gustav. I wouldn't be surprised to find out he's more than hundred years old, Sephiroth thought, looking straight into the man's dark, intelligent eyes. Secondly, he was dressed in a brown, simple, barely decorated robe that made him resemble a priest of some sort. He looked dignified, wise, reasonable and exceptionally clever. After observing him for a few seconds, Sephiroth decided one had to be careful around this man.

"Welcome to Muar-Svyen-a-Tor, Sephiroth." Valagar spoke "I am glad that we met." Sephiroth didn't answer. The whole idea of talking to the real Cetra was at least embarrassing. "Well, are you not going to say anything?" the old man finally asked.

To the hell with politeness, Sephiroth thought. (We're not here to exchange courtesies.)

"What am I expected to say?" he answered coldly "That I'm equally glad? Well, that'd be a lie and I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to make it sound believable." it felt good, speaking this way to someone so important. Through his entire life Sephiroth would never dare to talk like that to President ShinRa. Now, however, the situation was different. He had completely nothing to loose. (My life, probably? I don't give a damn about it.)

Kyro suppressed an appalled gasp. Xavier and Gustav exchanged amused glances. Valagar, however, remained neutral and polite, completely unprovoked.

"I understand your surprise and distrust." he patiently answered "…And I will try to explain our situation as quickly as possible." Sephiroth frowned. (OUR situation?) "Here, at the Council…" Valagar continued "…we are responsible for the future of the Promised Land. It is actually a very small planet, belonging only to the Cetra, which denies the law of gravity, moving across the universe. However, the world we have discovered consists of many planets, inhabited by various creatures. As you already know, probably even too well, the Cetra or the Humans are not the only intelligent races… Anyway, there is a planet called Sandalya a few light-years away from here; an average-sized human kingdom is situated there. Six weeks ago our artificial satellite spotted an unknown alien ship heading in Sandalya's direction. We established it belongs to Räelans which means the planet might be in a danger of invasion."

Sephiroth's dispassionate, faint shrug was at least annoying to some of the Council members. "So you wish to stop them." he spoke "May I ask, how? And why does it concern me?"

Valagar nodded. "Actually, we believe we can resolve the possible conflict without resorting to violence. We do not want Humans and Räelans to fight each other, since it may lead to a war than would eventually threaten the Promised Land. I decided to go there and try to prevent the outburst of hostility… or side with the Humans, when absolutely necessary. I am taking three other Cetra with me. Furthermore, I wish you would come with us." Valagar fell silent. He was wise enough to omit many inconvenient aspects of the situation in his short speech. For example, he 'accidentally' forgot to mention that Jenova had also been one of the Räelans… or that Aeris was one of the five people who were going to travel to Sandalya. He knew that Sephiroth would agree anyway but he wanted him to agree of his own free will.

The only sign of Sephiroth's surprise were his slightly raised eyebrows. In his thoughts, however, he was more than amazed to hear Valagar's suggestion. He lowered his head. (Gods… Why…? Why me!? I don't want to take part in this! I care nothing about the Promised Land, let alone about some place I've never heard of!)

"Think about it, Sephiroth." Valagar's face was expressionless but convincing at the same time "It is your chance to accept the truth about your past and start an entirely new life."

Still looking at the floor, Sephiroth winced, at the same time trying to hide his anger. (You expect me to forget everything and sacrifice myself for something I don't give a damn about? To hell with all of you…) The silence prolonged. The Cetra waited more or less patiently for Sephiroth's answer, the answer they knew was simply inevitable. Finally Sephiroth raised his head.

"…No."

"I beg your pardon…?" Xavier seemed to be authentically surprised.

"I'm not going anywhere."

"You dare to refuse us!?" Kyro nearly shouted, narrowing his eyes. The hostility in his expression was obvious.

"We're the Council." Gustav explained solemnly, much more composed and reasonable than his younger companion "You can't ignore our wishes."

Sephiroth only stared at him. He didn't really care about anybody's reaction. "You've already heard my answer." he repeated in a slightly annoyed tone of voice. He wanted to leave and slam the door, but he decided it wouldn't be a very wise thing to do, due to the fact he was facing completely unknown people.

"Why not?" Movitriss asked firmly.

"I don't like the general idea of being used as a pawn in some kind of your diplomatic game."

Leave me alone, he thought angrily. (Can't you see I'm tired with everything… War, politics, diplomacy… I've had enough.)

I wish I were dead

(There's nothing more left for me in this world… or in any other, for that matter.)

"Many people will lose their lives if we don't stop the conflict." Illyssan took a step forward. Sephiroth was truly amused now, the statement made him want to laugh bitterly. (She's actually counting on my… compassion?)

"I'm not interested." he repeated "What do I care about that them? Or about your politics?"

Illyssan frowned. "You know well it's not only about Sandalya. We may all die."

Sephiroth looked straight at the slightly older woman. There was absolutely no emotion visible in his eyes. And when he spoke, his voice was cold and indifferent. "So what?"

"You arrogant son of a bitch!!!"

It all happened too fast for anybody to react. Kyro rushed forward, instantly drawing his sword.

Sephiroth noticed the sudden movement even before the blade appeared in Kyro's hand. He could have easily dodged the blow. Judging from the remarkable speed in which the sword was drawn, Kyro had to be an excellent warrior, yet Sephiroth still believed he had a fair chance againgt him.

He could almost feel the adrenaline rushing in his veins and his calm, blue eyes momentarily became mako-green. He nearly reached for his weapon, instantly realizing he had none…

Unconditioned reflex, he thought bitterly with an odd sense of humor.

…yet it still didn't change anything. He could feel the power right at his fingertips, burning and itching, almost forcing him to defend himself, to trust his instincts and kill the attacker… (Who is this man to judge me!?) He raised his hand and suddenly hesitated…

(…fight him…? What for…? The only way to get free is to…)

…and the next second he found himself laying on his back with a silver blade pressed to his throat.

The impact of hitting the marble floor left him breathless for a few seconds. He felt a sharp pain and something warm trickled down the side of his neck; he momentarily realized it was his own blood. If Kyro intended to kill him, he was on a right way… but he didn't. Not yet. The other Council members fell silent, most probably joining Kyro's side or simply waiting for Valagar to act. Valagar was quiet, though.

"Now. What. Did. You. Say." the young Cetra asked very slowly, emphasizing every single word.

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes, barely controlling his rage. (You think that being a Cetra gives you a right to treat me like that!?)

"You've heard me." he hissed.

"You have no right to refuse, you bastard!" Sephiroth didn't bother to answer. Kyro stood over him, still pressing the sword to his neck.

What a familiar situation…

Furious as he was, Sephiroth suddenly wanted to laugh. Kyro reminded him of a certain young, blonde man, the last face he saw before waking up in the Promised Land… Well, not exactly. Kyro's hair was blonde but not golden. And his eyes weren't blue, only brown. But the way he held his sword, the way his eyes glowed with hate… Sephiroth knew Kyro had his reasons, he even understood some of them. Yes, most probably he had no right to refuse and the hostility was justified. However, it didn't make him feel less angry now. And at the same time he knew all he had to do for the Masamune to appear in his hand was to snap his fingers. And then he could just…

No!

…rip his throat open and end this pain once and for all.

(Brilliant. And next what? Kill everybody else? That won't end my problems, right?) He closed his eyes, forcing himself to calm down. (Do I really want to live like this…? Always running? I'd never be accepted… so why even bother…)

so pathetic

(Am I afraid of death…? No, I'd rather welcome it gladly… because I know the only way to escape is to kill myself…)

He opened his eyes – now blue and tranquil – and looked straight in Kyro's furious ones.

"What are you waiting for…?" he nearly whispered. "Do it."

Kyro snarled in disbelief but he composed himself very quickly. "Fine!" he hissed, gripping the sword's handle tighter. And suddenly a loud, long, female scream pierced the entire room.

"NO!!!"

Movitriss rushed forward, grabbing Kyro's wrist a little too late. Crimson blood stained the marble floor. And all at once everybody started to shout one by one.

Damn, Sephiroth thought, loosing his consciousness, they always have to screw up something. (Why won't they finally decide, whether they want to kill me or not…)

***

Aeris got up, brushing some dirt off her linen skirt. She gently touched a young tree's trunk, running her fingers over its smooth surface.

(Perhaps someday I'll return to the Promised Land. This tree will be fully grown-up then…)

"Aeris!" she heard a male voice calling.

She turned around to see Zerkún standing at the veranda, waving at her. "Aeris, supper's ready!"

She waved back. "I'm coming!" The man nodded and disappeared inside.

Aeris suppressed an angry sigh. Zerkún was her mother's second husband and Aeris – despite having no memories of her real father – still couldn't get used to this unfamiliar man. Zerkún was nice, sure, even quite handsome for that matter. He was an awesome storyteller and liked to joke a lot. Aeris understood her mother's choice. She even liked the man herself, but…

The house she was now living in was supposed to be her own, yet she still felt like a stranger here. Like an unwanted guest. Sometimes she had an impression of disturbing Zerkún and Ifalna's privacy. She didn't even have that good contact with her own mother…

All right, so maybe it was Ifalna who gave birth to her, who taught her how to smile or speak, how to walk, how to understand the Planet's voice. Yet it was still Elmyra who she had loved the most, apparently because they had spent so much time together. And Elmyra had been a wonderful mother: caring, understanding, compassionate. Almost never questioning the way Aeris acted, even if she had kept talking about the strange voices she had been hearing in her head.

I miss her so much, Aeris thought, entering the house, remembering to take off her shoes. (At least I know she's save…)

It wasn't just a simple emotional attachment. It was a deep love, something much deeper than what she felt for Ifalna right now. It was simply too late for that. Almost twenty years had passed and Ifalna has become almost a stranger. Aeris wondered how it was even possible. And she felt guilty about that. She loved Ifalna, of course, but there was no real understandment between the two of them, no real trust. Ifalna wasn't her friend any more, despite acting like one.

Passing the living room, she stopped by the fireplace. There was her father's photo standing on a shelf. A picture of Daniel Gast, her real father. She reached out her hand and touched the photo's delicate frame. The middle-aged, friendly man inside was smiling at her, looking straight at the camera.

Damn, I'm so sentimental

(What am I doing…? I didn't even know him, right? And besides, he was a complete bastard, working for ShinRa, probably never questioning his superiors' motives, caring way too much about money, blindly devoted to science. He was the one that started the whole madness with Jenova… It's his fault mama died. He didn't stop the guards back then… He could have at least tried…) she frowned, suddenly feeling angry. The man in the picture only smiled in response.

No wonder mom decided to remarry, Aeris thought.

"Aeris!" Zerkún's voice was louder now; it came from the kitchen.

"I'm coming!" she called impatiently, at the same time jerking her hand away from the frame, feeling slightly ashamed, as if she was betraying Zerkún or something. She didn't know why, though. It was Ifalna who put this picture here, right?

(Zerkún tries to act so nice… he makes me feel like I should repay his kindness… Well, I'm not going to see him again any time soon.)

She walked into the large kitchen, filled with the golden light of the setting sun. If Aeris liked anything about this house at all, it had to be the light. Every single room here was bright and spacious, creating a nice feeling of warmth.

Zerkún looked up from a cup of tea, noticing the young woman's expression. "Aren't you going to eat with us? Your mother's going to be here in a minute."

"I think I'd rather eat upstairs." Aeris murmured, taking the plate from the table and walking back toward the door.

"Why?" Zerkún asked, frowning.

(Because I'm still not comfortable in your presence…)

"I have to finish my packing as soon as possible" she shrugged "You know I'm leaving very early tomorrow."

"I know." he nodded, lowering his head "We'll miss you." he said, probably not even realizing how awkward it sounded. Aeris did, however, and she almost smiled.

"Right." she agreed half-heartedly and hesitantly left the room.

***

She stood in front of an open wardrobe, impatiently tapping her fingers against her arm. There was a large bag laying on her bed and masses of different clothes scattered everywhere across the room. Aeris had never been very quick at packing. She sighed, growing more irritated every second. The whole activity seemed to surpass her. Right now she was standing in the middle of chaos. Ifalna had to choose exactly this moment to enter the room.

"How's it going, darling?" the older woman asked, closing the door behind her and frowning at what she saw "Apparently not very well… Shall I help you?"

Aeris appreciated the offer but sometimes she didn't like being treated like a small girl. "No, I'll be fine." she answered firmly, in spite of feeling more than a little bit helpless. She carefully looked around the room, finally giving up "Can you see my yellow dress anywhere?"

"It's here." Ifalna answered, bending down and pulling the dress from a colorful heap of clothes. Holding it with one hand, she couldn't suppress a giggle: everything in the room looked slightly ridiculous. Still frustrated, Aeris only stared at her oddly but next second she burst out laughing, too.

"I'm never gonna finish this!" she exclaimed, collapsing on the bed. Ifalna laid the dress on top of the opened bag and sat beside her daughter.

"You're no longer the little girl I used to hold in my arms such a long time ago…" she finally spoke, acting sentimental not for the first time "You've changed… became stronger and more mature. I guess I'll always miss my silly, innocent little girl but I want you to know I'm so proud of you, my dear."

"Mom." Aeris decided to be sincere with her mother "I don't want to go."

Ifalna smiled; it was a half-reassuring and a half-sorrowful smile "…But you're still leaving. That was a very brave decision. You'll be alright, honey."

Aeris sighed. (Well, Valagar didn't give me a choice… He put everything in such words… Refusing would make me feel so ashamed, that I simply had to say 'yes'.)

"I wish I didn't have to…" her voice trailed off. (…Why me?)

"So do I. I'm sorry you can't stay here with us. But remember, Aeris, that duty always has to come above pleasure."

She doesn't understand me, Aeris realized. "Mother, I'm scared."

"I know, honey. How about using a different point of view, then? It's a difficult journey but it could also turn out to be a wonderful adventure…"

(Why won't you listen, mother?)

"Mother, I'm afraid of HIM!" she nearly shouted "You know he's coming with us! And I'm scarred to death!"

"Don't be." Ifalna answered, frowning. "I'm sure Sephiroth's a trustworthy person now, different from what you remember."

"And what if he's not? I think I was very stupid of the Council to save his life, let alone bring him here!"

Ifalna looked at her seriously. "Stop it, Aeris!" she nearly ordered. Aeris instantly fell silent, looking at her mother in surprise. There was a strange tone in her voice, which sounded almost like… anger? Aeris would had never thought her mother could actually act that way… with such roughness. (Why? All right, so perhaps I shouldn't have said that about the Council… Does she respect their decisions so much?)

"I don't want you to talk about him like that. Never."

(…Him?)

Aeris blinked, surprised with her mother's words. "…Why?" she only managed to say.

"Sephiroth's not a bad person, besides, even if he were, you're not allowed to judge him. Maybe he had no choice but to act that way. Things that happened weren't entirely his fault."

WHAT!? He murdered me in the first place, don't you remember!?

"Whose fault, then!?" Aeris almost snapped at her mother. "Mom! He killed me!"

(Why!? So even you can't understand me!? I hate him! He tried to injure the Planet, hurt so much people… And you tell me he's not a bad person!?)

Hearing her daughter's angry remark, Ifalna suddenly turned her face away. "Well, I'm afraid it's many people's fault, not only Jenova's… Even… mine."

"Mom!" Aeris cried out, finally loosing her self-control "What are you saying…?"

"Aeris, I could've saved him from doing all those horrible things; he could've been raised differently, not by Hojo, perhaps becoming a different person as well. Instead, I've chosen to flee with your father, without even saying goodbye to him. Do you realize how it makes me feel now? Still, after twenty four years?" Ifalna shook her head "I could've taken him with us but I was too scared. Afraid, that they would find us in a matter of a few hours if I had stolen their precious experiment… So I simply left him. I was so selfish…"

"Mother, stop it!" Aeris took Ifalna's hand and squeezed it tightly "You did what you thought was right. You chose to protect your family! There's nothing wrong with that…"

"I thought you were raised to be less egocentric."

"Mother!" pain flashed in Aeris' eyes.

"I'm sorry, Aeris…" Ifalna lowered her voice "…but you have to understand. Besides… even if he eventually killed you…"

she speaks so casually about that! Aeris clenched her teeth.

"…you own him your life in the first place."

WHAT!?

Aeris stirred nervously. "…What do you mean…?" (Now that's ridiculous…)

Ifalna was serious as never and her green eyes shone with sorrow "You could've ended just like him, Aeris. Remember that before judging him next time. Look." she said, frowning "You know what happened right after your birth, don't you?"

Aeris nodded. "Father was killed and we were both taken to Midgar, isn't that right, mom?"

"Yes. We were taken to ShinRa's laboratory…" is was obvious that speaking about it was very, very hard for Ifalna "Four years later, however, I managed to escape with you."

"I… I don't remember anything." Aeris admitted. (Which is perfectly fine… I'm so sorry for my mom…) "I remember only that station, fog and trains' whistles. And… Elmyra. She promised she would take care of me. You made her promise that."

(I was so scared…)

there was blood all over the stairs

(My mother was dying and all I could do was watch. I remember feeling so helpless, so terrified…) the memory made Aeris' eyes water, suddenly she wanted to bury her face in Ifalna's chest and cry, to get rid of all the pain and sorrow of that day. Her mother's voice pulled her out of her train of thought.

"We wouldn't have escaped if it was not for him."

Aeris blinked once more. (Him? Who is she talking about?) And suddenly she realized.

"…No."

"Yes. Sephiroth helped me back then, he helped me save you. He told me it didn't matter I had run away with Daniel. And of course he lied, I could clearly read it from his eyes, yet he still helped us, saying we were worth it…" Aeris was silent. "I want you to realize, Aeris, that he was twelve back then, still a child, no matter how mature he appeared. And if you ask me, what he did was extremely brave and magnanimous. I'm sure he had to pay for that later, as well…" Ifalna put a hand on Aeris' knee "It's a real mercy you don't remember anything of the time you spent there. Think of how your life could have looked like if you had stayed there. Just think about it."

oh gods

"…So please, honey, promise me you'll never judge him too fast."

Aeris hesitated. So her mother cares about somebody like HIM and doesn't even give a damn about her own daughter's fears? "All right, mom." she finally spoke "You know I love you."

"Thank you, sweetie." Ifalna whispered, embracing the younger woman "I think I own him so much…"

And you want ME to repay YOUR debt, Aeris thought angrily. (But wait…) She suddenly hesitated. (Didn't Sephiroth save my life as well…?)

only to kill me eighteen years later

(…But that was such a long time ago! He probably doesn't remember it now, either, or simply doesn't care. Damn!) she wanted to scream in frustration (So now I'm stuck with feeling like I owe him my life!)

"I'm sorry if I sounded a little too harsh, my dear." Ifalna moved back a little "I guess I had to tell you that before you left." she stood up "I can't possibly force you to forgive him or to like him but I want you to respect him at least." she sighed "I guess I'll go now, I have to calm down a little. I'll come back later to help you pack your bag."

Aeris nodded wordlessly, not even looking at her mother. Ifalna walked out, leaving Aeris confused, angered, uneasy… and still scarred of what awaited her in the future.

End of Chapter 2

***

Author's Notes: Now, Ifalna's story wasn't original but what's wrong with using some really good ideas, even if they were done before? (Yes, I know I'm pathetic. At least I didn't write my own lame retrospection, which would only imitate other, much better stories…) Anyway! Poor Ifalna… I've always imagined her to have a mayor guilt complex about Sephy, just like Vincent did about Lucrecia. Yeah, whatever. Forget about Ifalna now.

So what happens next? Aeris says she doesn't care about Sephiroth's past actions and her mother's guilt but we all know she's just way too sensitive to ignore anything, right? Moreover, what about the endangered Sandalya and the Promised Land? Wasn't Sephiroth supposed to be a hero in this story? Saving people or something? Oh well, and he still doesn't give a damn… Don't worry. I guess I have a little surprise waiting for him…

PLEASE, review! REVIEW!!! And if you're interested in the continuation of this story (Sephiroth and Aeris will eventually have to meet each other… he, he, he… maybe), please let me know.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Sephiroth's still not mine! (Aeris says she owns him ^_^) All right, I'm serious now: they both belong to Squaresoft. However, the bit at the chapter's end (gasp) DOESN'T. And it's not mine, either: I'm hundred percent sure you'll recognize the author.

Author's Notes: Thanks for all your reviews, they were motivating and made my last Tuesday afternoon a little happier. It feels nice to know somebody is reading this. I was surprised with the number of your comments (expected two or something), so please, surprise me some more…

I'm sure you've already noticed everything is happening very slowly in this fic… simply because I prefer dialogue and psychology to action. I'm creating a human relationship here, right…? So even more talking/thinking awaits you…

Back to the point… (Who's paying attention to my notes, anyway?) So, Aeris's already packed but what about the oh-so-noble-and-caring Sephiroth? Isn't he going to help? And wasn't he… uh… badly wounded? This chapter is short but quite important, mostly because Movitriss appears here (you've already met her at the Council's meeting). She's the alternate pairing for Sephiroth, the one you were so much against …BUT remember that "alternate" does not mean "necessary". For more clues see the Author's Notes of the previous chapter.

Enjoy this part!

***

He woke up to the same, familiar room, the room that he slowly started to get used to. Languidly, lazily he opened his eyes and suddenly his whole body tensed because he could momentarily sense there was somebody else in the chamber. He sat up quickly in his bed, instantly lucid and vigilant.

Movitriss stood by the window that was now fully opened, letting the fresh, warm air inside along with the sweet smell of flowers and birds' twitter. She was leaning on the broad sill. He couldn't see the expression on her face for she was turning her back on him.

Sephiroth frowned. He was used to privacy and being alone. (What is this woman doing? How long has she been there?)

"You're awake." she suddenly spoke, still not bothering to turn around "How's your throat?"

He instinctively raised his hand to touch the side of his neck. He couldn't feel anything under his fingers; no scar, no bandage, nothing at all… but it still hurt. He frowned once more.

"It's not your concern." he answered, keeping his voice polite, despite the obvious antipathy in his words.

She laughed in response, finally turning around.

"Well, it is." she smiled. His blue eyes remained cold and indifferent, not a slightest hint of humor visible in them.

"Could you please leave." that was not a question, as far as both of them were concerned.

"Ah." her smile did not fade, though Sephiroth wasn't sure whether she was mocking him or not "You're starting to become so predictable."

He only stared at her icily. "Is that all you wanted to say?"

"No." Movitriss solemnly shook her head "In fact, there's a lot more than just that. Valagar sent me." she announced. Well, it wasn't exactly like that, she thought silently. (Valagar himself wanted to come here but I've said I could do it …I wanted to. I wanted to make sure that…)

"Look." Sephiroth said, forcing himself not to sound as annoyed as he was "Perhaps you haven't noticed but I'm still half-naked and in my bed. As curious as I may be about what does Valagar wants to tell me…" the irony in his voice was more than evident "…I'd rather listen to it being fully dressed and awake. Is that fine with you?" he said through clenched teeth.

She almost grinned in response; amazed by the way he acted, the way he was angered and embarrassed.

"Meet me down in a garden in half an hour, then." she said and left the room a few seconds later.

***

He found her on a small, decorative swing, placed among some old willows. She was absently playing with an expensive, ivory fan. Wearing a light, airy white dress, with her curled, arm-length red hair dancing around in the breeze, she resembled an ephemeral butterfly. Her delicate, flawless face made her look very attractive.

Sephiroth didn't notice that, actually, or perhaps noticed but paid no attention. Perhaps he was simply preoccupied with the fact that his neck was still sore and hurt like hell, even though somebody had obviously cast a healing spell on it just after he fainted.

Damn you, Kyro

He stopped just a few steps away from her, leaning against the willow's crooked trunk and folding his arms across his chest. It was warm in the garden, so warm that he had to roll up the sleeves of his shirt.

"Well?" he asked half-nonchalantly and half-expectantly.

Movitriss raised her gaze off the ground and looked straight at him, yet still not answering. Her eyes were deep and golden, resembling some sweet, sticky honey. Sephiroth pushed those thoughts aside, strangely a little concerned for her, because she appeared sad and troubled. He wondered whether it was just another one of her silly games. Childish as she seems to be she'd probably burst out laughing any time now, he decided. The sound of his name being spoken pulled him out of his train of though.

"Sephiroth…" Movitriss started, beginning to feel quite unsure about this conversation "I'm sorry about what happened yesterday." she said quietly "Especially about Kyro's violent outburst. It was foolish of him to judge you like that. I want you to know we don't all think that way. And still…" she was brave enough to look him straight in the eye "I want you to reconsider your decision."

"I've already made my decision." he finally spoke, sitting down among the grass under the willow's delicate branches. It was so sultry that it made him a little bit sleepy and tired, yet peaceful at the same time; that was an unfamiliar feeling to him, something never known or perhaps only long forgotten.

Movitriss raised her feet of the ground and the swing moved a little. Still toying with her fan, the woman suppressed a heavy sigh. She looked slightly older now, nevertheless still remaining the delicate fairy of the garden.

"I'm sorry." all of a sudden she looked down "You have to help us. I'm afraid you don't have a choice."

"And why is that?" he instantly narrowed his eyes, the peaceful, dreamy feeling disappearing from his face.

"Valagar told me he wouldn't force you unless he really had to. I think he actually expected you to agree of your own free will." she paused for a second "So did I."

Sephiroth only shrugged. She was turning out to be such a difficult person to deal with… much more than Kyro, who was just an irritating fool to forget about. Well, Movitriss… She actually made him feel a little… guilty?

(Guilty of what? It's not my concern…)

"What do you mean?" he asked her coldly "Is that a… threat?" she didn't shake her head 'no' and that was just enough for him. However, as usual, he simply decided to wait.

"They can send you to a place that very much resembles the human idea of hell." she spoke, trying hard to keep her voice calm "…The place where a mortal body dies but a soul lives forever. The place where all nightmares come true. It's a deadly trap, no one who was ever banished there has managed to escape." Movitriss paused "That or Sandalya." she sighed "So you see… there's really no choice left."

Sephiroth waited for Movitriss to finish, keeping his eyes on her, although she was looking at the ground. "…I still have an option, you know…"

"No, you don't." she interrupted him, as if reading his thoughts "Kill yourself and you'll end up there as well." the silence that followed was very, very long.

"I see." he stood up slowly, still a little stiff from his recent wounds. It took a lot of his self-control not to shout at Movitriss "So that's how the noble Cetra Council works." he sneered at her instead.

Do I deserve any better?

Anger flashed in his eyes. (No, not again, not anymore. I won't be a pawn in yet another game.)

"I don't have a choice, right?" he hissed "Not a fair one, anyway."

(I would decide on any fate to escape being a puppet once again. Science. ShinRa. Or Jenova. Not anymore.)

Would I…?

(Now what did Movitriss say about this particular choice?)

"You know I'm serious, Sephiroth." Movitriss spoke, still avoiding his gaze "As much as I hate to admit it and as much as he means you no harm, Valagar's threat is true. Please, be reasonable…" she also stood up and raised her hand, as if reaching out to him. Sephiroth only stared at her coldly, his eyes were distant and hostile, and a barely visible green glow could be seen in them.

"I do not like being forced into anything."

"I know and I'm sorry, so is Valagar, but you have to understand… We need your help and… protecting Sandalya and the Promised Land is a good thing to do…" she took a step forward, looking quite desperate at that moment "Look, why shouldn't you help those people? What have they done to you? Why should you refuse? If that place is saved, you'd win their trust and…"

"Shouldn't you say "our" trust?"

"The Council trusts you already…"

He laughed in response.

Yeah, right. You can't lie that well, Movitriss…

"Yes, indeed. Especially Kyro." he said sarcastically.

"Well, I do!" her lips shivered with barely controlled anger. She flung her fan to the ground. "And forget about Kyro! He's a hot-tempered bastard but he doesn't rule the Council!"

They were silent for a long moment, both angered, glaring at one other and thinking at the same time. Their conversation had came to a standstill. Oblivious of that, somewhere in the distance the birds were singing. Finally, Movitriss spoke in a calm and quiet voice, almost whispering one but meaningful word:

"Please."

He was angry with all of them for making him feel that way…

I swore to myself, never again…

(A marionette.)

She's right, he thought. (If I don't cooperate they'll just get rid of me and figure out another way to save the damned planet and the Promised Land. To them it doesn't matter that much. And to me…)

He raised a glowed hand to his pale forehead, briefly closing his eyes.

I wish I could just die. And finally forget

He's too proud, Movitriss thought. He's going to refuse even this time, she suddenly realized and a feeling of dread overwhelmed her, though strangely enough she was not concerned for the Promised Land but for Sephiroth solely. (He doesn't really care…)

"Fine." Sephiroth said, raising his head and glaring at her mockingly, as she sighed with relief "I'll join your little quest."

And with that he left her, standing in a shade of the willow. Squinting in the blinding sun he felt far from peace and satisfaction…

What a coward I am. What a coward…

…And he was asking himself the everlasting question of the humankind.

***

…Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

And by opposing end them? To die, - to sleep, -

No more; and by a sleep to say we end,

The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks

That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation 

Devoutly to be wish'd. To die; - to sleep; -

To sleep! perchance to dream! ay, there's the rub;

For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

Must give us pause: there's the respect

That makes calamity of so long life;

For (…) who would fardels bear,

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscover'd country from whose bourn

No traveller returns, puzzles the will,

And makes us rather bear those ills we have

Than fly to others that we know not of?

Thus conscience does make cowards of us all.

End of Chapter 3

***

Author's Notes: If you've skipped the famous Shakespeare's piece for some reason (thinking it's long, boring or that you already know it by heart) go back up there and read it! Now!!! And if you've already done it, then do it again, please! It's a beautiful explanation of Sephiroth's final decision and I want his behavior in my story to be at least slightly believable. I've always imagined him to help Sandalya out of fear or selfishness; and not because he started to love everybody all of a sudden. Was that much OOC for him…?

To tell you the truth, I wasn't actually inspired with Shakespeare to write this part. Just after I'd typed 'End of Chapter 3', I spotted 'The tragedy of Hamlet…' (one of the very few English books I own) on my bookshelf and remembered this fragment at once, deciding it would fit here perfectly. It was a mere coincidence… but I like the final effect.

One last thing: sorry, Aeris fans! She will certainly appear in the next chapter, of course only if there would be another chapter. To write more, or not to write more; that is the question. You decide. Reviews, I need your reviews! Please, I really want to improve and I'm not afraid to hear there's something wrong with this story… but I just hope you like it. And next time Aeris definitely IS going to meet Sephiroth…


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: The same as before. I gave up writing brand new disclaimers for a while…

Author's Notes: Man, that's the longest prologue I've ever seen… Anyway, don't worry, because this chapter they'll finally (fanfares) meet each other… maybe even talk… (… and fall in love and kiss, living happily ever after. The end. Or wait! Sephy will go insane once more, he'll kill Aeris and marry Movitriss! Yeah, I'm so evil! Uh… just kidding. Stupid me. Strange sense of humor…)

…sense of humor…? What sense of humor!?

Anyway, here goes another long chapter for you! (Could've been shorter but my rule is to write first and think later… and I don't like throwing out anything I've written.) Check it out and don't forget to let me know what you think!

***

The day they were supposed to leave the Promised Land was bright and sunny, as if the planet itself wanted to tell them to stay, tempting them with such a marvelous weather.

"Nice piece of junk." Kyro said in the most monotone, unimpressed voice possible, staring at the blue-painted starship. Then he yawned, running a gloved hand through his tousled, blonde hair. "Gods!" he moaned "It's only half past five in the morning!"

"Stop complaining." Movitriss glared at him "You shouldn't have stayed that late with your friends yesterday."

"Probably not." Kyro shrugged, deciding it wouldn't be wise to argue with her**; **she was still quite mad at him about what he had done at the last Council meeting "…But I simply had to say goodbye to them. I'm not gonna see them for long, right?"

"Well, they're not going to see you very soon but for you it would be only a one-week-journey. According to the theory of relativity…"

"I know the theory of relativity!" he cut her short, irritated with everybody's habit of treating him like a fool only because he was a little younger. "Anyway, how far is Sandalya?"

"About four hundred and twenty-eight million kilometers away from our current position…" Movitriss finished lacing up her shoe and straightened up.

"Gods!" exclaimed Kyro "Coming to think about it… I've never been outside the Promised Land before. I'm so excited about this entire journey! …Aren't you!?"

She raised her head and looked straight at Kyro. There was a strange expression in her golden eyes… a dreamy look of some sort. "Yes…" she answered, suddenly smiling and looking away "Yes, I am."

***

Aeris stared in awe at the majestic silvery-blue starship, shielding her eyes from the dazzling sun with the back of her hand.

(Awesome… I'd never have thought Cetran technology could be so advanced…)

Well, as a matter of fact, it was quite a small starship but it still impressed her. It was the only spacecraft she'd ever seen apart from the creepy, dilapidated, moss-overgrown rocket that belonged to the ShinRa. In her thoughts she couldn't help but compare those two vehicles… and the outcome of that comparison was rather obvious.

(Well, at least it looks reliable, right?)

Satisfied with what she had seen, Aeris lowered her head, briefly closing her eyes and rubbing them. Slightly blinded by the ubiquitous brightness, she started to walk in the starship's direction. She could hear a car approaching in the distance but she ignored the sound and kept moving. It was about six o'clock in the morning and the landing field seemed to be completely deserted, there were even no crewmembers or technicians in sight, let alone any occasional passers-by. Suddenly Aeris caught a glimpse of a movement out of a corner of an eye. She turned around to see two people, who were obviously immersed in a talk with each other, getting out of the car that had stopped about fifty meters away, at the edge of the airfield. One of the men was Valagar. And the other… Aeris gasped, momentarily coming to a halt. The other one was Sephiroth. He stood far away, in a shadow of a nearby building but she instantly recognized him, even in spite of the sunspots that danced before her eyes.

He was still terrifying to her, dressed entirely in black. She could swear his eyes were glowing a little… or was it just her imagination? She moved back a few steps and all at once remembered she had to breathe. She wanted to withdraw without being noticed, but she could only stand there and gaze, as if hypnotized. And then what she feared happened, for suddenly Sephiroth looked up…

***

…noticing her for the first time.

Gods!!! What is SHE doing here!?

It was like looking at a painting. Everything, even the colors seemed to be perfectly composed by some invisible artist; the yellow landing field and the silver-blue starship against a green background of some trees… not to mention the flawless blue sky above. And Aeris stood in the middle of that painting, staring straight at him. The gentle, morning wind was moving her loose, soft hair, which partially covered her firm, yet delicate face. She wore a light brown dress. The brilliant sun behind her back framed her silhouette with a golden glow, creating an amazing and beautiful visual effect, at the same time making the whole picture blurred to a human eye… but thanks to his catlike, vertical pupils Sephiroth could see everything clearly…

an angel

The impression lasted for only a few seconds, but to Sephiroth it seemed like an eternity. Strange emotions passed through his head at once. Looking at Aeris he felt a mixture of shock, shame, fear, grief, and… fascination.

He blinked. (What am I doing…?) Only now did he notice the expression on Aeris' face. She was frightened, curious perhaps, but frightened, nevertheless. Breaking the strange tension between them, she turned around and quickly disappeared inside the ship.

Shaking off his thoughts, Sephiroth turned to Valagar, narrowing his eyes.

"What is she doing here?" he hissed.

"She's going with us." Valagar answered calmly.

"What!?" Sephiroth lost his composure, raising his voice a little more than he intended to.

"You've heard me, Sephiroth. She's coming."

"…Why?" he forced himself not to shout.

"For the same reason as you. We may need her. She's agreed to help us."

Sephiroth almost scowled. "You can't just… Why haven't you told me…!?"

Valagar seemed untouched by the younger man's frustration; he remained in a flippant mood. "I know you had killed her. So what…? We both know it had happened under completely different circumstances. Do you hate her now?"

"No, it's just…"

"Then I see no problem here."

"Then you are short-sighted!"

Valagar shrugged. "I care about your opinion but no matter what you think, she's going with us. As well as you are. You'd better try to come to terms with it." there was no real threat or mockery in Valagar's words, the man was only stating a mere fact. He put a hand on Sephiroth's shoulder and the younger man didn't pull away, he only stared at Valagar with those angry green eyes. "Don't worry. I have a hunch that everything will turn out well."

"You bastard." Sephiroth clenched his hands into fists. He wanted to say something else but suddenly changed his mind, coming to a conclusion that he wouldn't win against Valagar's will anyway, neither would he made him change his decision.

So instead of throwing a furious or ironical comment, he simply turned away without a word and started to walk towards the starship. Valagar followed him in silence.

And so their journey began.

***

The travel to Sandalya was supposed to last about a week, at least when considered from the travelers' point of view. In fact, since the day they had set out, more than four years passed in the Promised Land or on any other stationary planet, Sandalya included.

The time on board went slowly for some and quite fast for the others. Everyone did their best to pretend everything was fine, that there was no real tension among them. Aeris and Sephiroth put a lot of effort into avoiding each other, which meant they hadn't practically met again apart from their brief encounter on the day when they took-off. Movitriss constantly sought Sephiroth's company, completely not bothered with his protests and assurances that he wanted to be left alone.

Three pilots took care of the course, their task was only to bring everybody safe to Sandalya; then they were supposed to leave. Kyro spent most of his time with them, chatting or playing cards, he was simply too young to find entertainment in Valagar's company (who rarely left his cabin, anyway). His clearly demonstrated hate for Sephiroth made him avoid Movitriss' company as well and Aeris disliked him for no apparent reason, which meant he was left on his own. In fact, Aeris had nothing against the blonde-haired warrior, she had simply chosen solitude… and, unlike Sephiroth, she managed to stay alone. That way almost an entire week passed and they were now no farther than fifty million miles from Sandalya…

***

Movitriss frowned, lifting a bishop from f4 and moving it to c7.

"Man…" she mumbled, biting her lower lip and trying to sound upset "…you're good. Give me a chance, OK?"

Sephiroth leaned his elbows on the table, thinking for a brief second. "Why? That wouldn't be a fair game, then." he said, taking her bishop with his tower in one smooth move. Movitriss sighed, smiling at the same time, when he was laying the bishop next to her hand.

"I've lost." she winced, blinking.

"Not yet." corners of Sephiroth's mouth lifted up a little. "Check."

"Gods!" Movitriss threw her head back, pretending to sound irritated but laughing instead. "You're incredible! And I thought I was clever!"

He rested his chin on one hand, narrowing his eyes mischievously. "You are. You're simply not paying enough attention."

"Whatever… Hey!" she exclaimed a moment later, still laughing, knowing that the game was already lost "What are you doing with that knight!?"

He almost smiled this time. "Checkmate."

Movitriss shook her head in amusement. "That was the quickest game I've ever played!" She lifted one of her fallen pawns. "…Want to play again? Perhaps a little slower this time…?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Why not?"

"Are you bored?"

He leaned back on his chair, watching her place the pawns on the board. "Not really. As a matter of fact, you're quite a skilled player…"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. It's not that I could possibly win against you." she put the white king next to the bishop "I'll take the whites." she reached out for a pawn but suddenly hesitated "I think you should talk to her." she said quietly but not shyly, moving one of the pawns to g3.

Sephiroth tensed, since he instantly knew whom Movitriss was speaking about, although the name had never actually been mentioned before in any of their many talks… and that was just perfect with him.

Aeris. I'd rather face a poisonous monster than her, Sephiroth thought. His eyes remained expressionless but he was far from being calm. "It's not your business." his reply was short and annoyed.

"I think you should." Movitriss repeated, not lifting her gaze from the board.

Sephiroth shrugged his arms. "What for?"

"You can't go on like this. Besides, we're a team now. We won't accomplish anything, if you two keep avoiding each other."

"You want me to apologize to her?"

"If you wish…" Movitriss started to laugh. "Oh, you're so stubborn. You're never gonna admit you've made a mistake, right?"

He smiled, at the same time wondering why he was smiling "…Never."

***

Aeris lifted her head from a novel she was reading and sighed, rubbing her tired eyes. Being social as she was, she found it very hard to remain silent and isolated for an entire week. However, she simply couldn't risk encountering Sephiroth, so no matter how much it cost her, she kept staying in her room… even if it meant reading the same book for the third time.

She was beginning to feel quite tired, but she didn't want to lay down yet, trying to fall asleep… she disliked the stillness, the silence, plus the monotone humming of the ventilation system always drove her mad. Putting the book away, she decided that some coffee might help her stay awake for a little longer. Poking her head through the door she noticed the corridor was empty, so a minute later she was already in the kitchen, rummaging through the shelves in search of some coffee beans.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't drag her thoughts away from Sephiroth. She knew she couldn't stay angry or suspicious very long, for she generally tried to accept people and get along with them even if it appeared difficult at the beginning. However, at the same time, she felt a strange urge to argue with everybody, to show the entire world she was not pleased with the way her life had turned out.

he. had. killed. me.

She also thought about what Ifalna had told her, later that night. She had spoken of vengeance and forgiveness. And about the different circumstances that make people act differently. About second chances and stuff like that… At first Aeris had been only irritated but now… the longer she thought about everything, the less she seemed to be sure about her anger. Suddenly she remembered the way Sephiroth had looked at her a few days ago at the airport. She could swear there had been no hatred in his eyes…

The bitter aroma of coffee filled the whole room. Lost in her thoughts, Aeris didn't heard the man entering the kitchen…

***

"Could you make me a cup of coffee as well, please?" Valagar said, while automatic door were closing behind him.

Aeris almost jumped at the sound of his voice. Seeing it was Valagar, she visibly relaxed. "…Of course." she answered, hesitantly starting to prepare another cup.

Valagar came up to a table and sat at one of the chairs. "I'm concerned about you." he said all of a sudden.

"Don't be." Aeris answered quickly, pouring coffee beans into a porcelain cup. "I'm fine."

"You're angry with us, aren't you?" Valagar said and it didn't sound much as a question.

She shook her head. "…No. Not anymore. I've learned to accept my life… even though I'm not very happy with it."

"You are very clever and very brave indeed, my child."

Aeris blushed, finally turning around to see Valagar's expression. The man's face remained emotionless but his eyes were sincere, suggesting he really meant what he had said. Aeris hesitated "Thank you…" she said simply and almost instantly tried to add: "But-"

"Shhh…" he stopped her, putting a finger on his own lips "No 'buts', Aeris, no 'buts'."

She laid a steaming, hot cup of coffee in front of him. He took a careful sip, then rested his elbows on the table, leaning his chin on clasped arms. "Why are you keeping away from us?" he asked "Do you find our company so terrible?"

"No, of course not." she argued "It's just that…" her voice trailed off, for she honestly didn't believe Valagar would understand.

"Don't be afraid of him, child." the old man spoke, looking up and meeting her gaze**. **"He's got a complicated character that is sometimes very hard to understand… but he's not entirely evil."

Aeris large, green eyes were amazed but still suspicious. "How would you know?"

"I know." he stated with such an unquestionable authority and such an implicit faith that Aeris felt like arguing would be something improper.

"Intuition?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Something much more reliable than that."

"The Lifestream cannot read a person's thoughts…" she opposed carefully.

"Yes, but it can show personal memories, allowing you to draw some conclusions… I'm quite a good psychologist, you know…"

Aeris fell silent. "So you believe he's… normal now…?" she decided to ask.

"And what do you believe is 'normal', then?" he threw her an amused glance.

Aeris looked at him carefully, as if trying to read his intentions. "I mean…" she paused, selecting her words. "I mean respecting ethics… following the commonly established norms of human behavior…"

Valagar smiled at her, but at the same time she had an impression that he was hiding something. "If that's the way you put it…" he paused to take a sip from his cup "Well, I'm leaving it for you to decide. It's childish to run away from your problems."

"Maybe…" Aeris' eyes held a distant look for a second. Then she shook her head. "I think I'm going to return to my room, anyway." she almost expected Valagar to frown and say something disappointed, like: 'so haven't you learn anything…?' but he only smiled, as if he knew better. Aeris walked out of the kitchen, entering the broad, brightly illuminated corridor. And she froze.

***

So did Sephiroth, who came to a halt only a few meters away. They were both too close to pretend they hadn't seen each other.

Aeris couldn't help but stare at the man. She was surprised to see how different he was from what she remembered. Last time they met, back on the Planet, she could have only noticed the madness in his green eyes and the narrow, silver blade of his terrifying sword. Today she felt like seeing him for the first time in her life.

He was tall, very lean and dressed entirely in black; black were his trousers, boots, gloves, shirt and a velvet band around his neck; a single obsidian glittered there. His silver, almost white hair was tied into a long braid, reaching well past his hips. The plait was decorated with a dark, velvet ribbon; the ribbon's ends were almost touching the ground. The man had the most incredible eyes she'd ever seen. Their color was ambiguous, impossible to determine; they were a mixture of sky-blue and intense green. To some extent, they looked like cat's eyes. They shone with a strange glow, giving Sephiroth's slender and frightfully pale face an eerie look.

Beautiful or not, he still frightened her,so she turned her head away, not wanting to look at him like that. She knew she had to remain composed around him.

"I'm… sorry." Sephiroth said, breaking the awkward silence. "I didn't want to disturb you." he turned away to leave.

Aeris was surprised to hear that his voice could be so calm. She was also more than shocked to see him acting like that: tranquil and polite; even if his politeness and tranquility were somewhat forced. And he was also quite… careful. As if he actually cared about what happened between them. She hesitated. (I guess Valagar was right. It's so childish to run away…)

"Wait…" she said bravely and instantly regretted her words. (Now what…?)

He stopped abruptly, not bothering to turn around. "Yes…?" he finally managed to say, masking his fear and embarrassment with irritation.

She managed to control her trembling hands, finally overcoming her fear. "It's not the way it was all supposed to be… right?" she almost blushed, realizing too late that it was a stupid, trivial thing to say.

Her words made him feel more than uneasy. (Why do I have to deal with her…? Looking in the eyes of one of my many victims… I guess it's a simple consequence of my past actions and choices… but then again, were they all really mine…?)

He slowly turned around and looked straight at her with those incredible eyes. Then he rested one hand on his hip, shaking his head. "It's not the way I've imagined my afterlife, either…"

She smiled bitterly, surprised where was this sudden courage coming from. "It's not an afterlife. It's really happening."

He laughed but his laugh was devoid of any true joy. "Fate is a strange thing, Aeris."

(What am I saying…?) He paused. (I don't believe in fate any more…)

"Was it fate that told you to kill me?" she spoke too fast, before she could even think, and she instantly lowered hereyes, blushing and biting her tongue. (Gods! I'm forgetting I'm talking with him!)

He frowned almost imperceptibly. (Why do I care about her opinion that much…? Why do I have an impression she is the one who should actually judge me…?). At the same time he wanted to laugh bitterly. (Straight to the point, Aeris, aren't you?)

"Look, Aeris." he said quietly "I'm going to kill you now, if that's your concern."

"Why should I trust you?"

"And why should I kill you?"

"…I don't know… Because you hate me?"

"Why should I hate you, then…?"

Aeris fell silent. Try as she might, she couldn't find an honest answer to that. There was a long silence between them. However, Aeris couldn't stop herself from asking that one basic, inevitable question…

"Why have you done it…?" both of them knew she meant not only her own death but also allthe other thingsthat had happened.

You'll never be able to understand, he thought, suddenly looking away. 'I don't know', he wanted to say, but he knew that it would be a lie. Of course he had his reasons back then and he knew well that he was far from being insane or simply manipulated by Jenova. He still considered some of those reasons right, the only difference was he had realized that vengeanceled do nothing.

Almost against himself, he decided to be honest. "Because I believed it was right."

I can't imagine it, Aeris thought. (How can anybody be convinced that killing innocent people or destroying a planet is right…?)

"What does it change?" he shrugged, not believing in any single world he spoke. "It's in the past."

Her eyes widened a little. "Don't you care…?"

of course I do

"Don't expect me to answer that." Sephiroth didn't avert his eyes.

Aeris shook her head rapidly. "I'm so much confused…" she admitted.

(I honestly don't know what to think about him… He's different… yet still so… inhuman… The way he acts, damn, he's so cold, as if he had no emotions at all…)

it's not true

(Maybe it's just a mask, then. I don't know him, right? Ifalna told me to forgive him…)

She looked straight at him, deciding to follow her instincts and depend on her innate gift of empathy to tell her the truth about this strange man.

At the same time Sephiroth was looking at her. Of course he remembered her from that day, 18 years ago; an innocent, little girl, not even realizing what was happening around her. He also remembered her from just a few weeks ago; a delicate, fragile woman that hadn't even screamed when his sword plunged into her back with an incredible force. That memory, however, was actually only a blur, like everything from the time he was serving Jenova. …And now she stood almost right before his eyes, not very different from the last time he had seen her; slender, graceful, beautiful. Innocent.

She's been through hell just like me and yet she has stayed innocent. Oh, how I envy her…

She resembled Ifalna so much…

bending over him, laying a warm hand on his shoulder. Her face hanging a few centimeters from his own. Her voice, soft and gentle: take care of yourself, Sephiroth… will you? Her eyes, large and green, shining with a mixture of terror and regret

Aeris took a deep breath, since Sephiroth's eyes were… sad? He's really a human, she suddenly realized and the thought struck her. (He's not an emotionless monster?)

And what if he's just an actor?

(…An actor…? …No…)

She decided to trust her heart. "I'm… just surprised to see… you're a… that you're… I mean…" she stopped, suddenly very embarrassed. (What am I trying to say!? It's such a nonsense…! -Sephiroth, I'm surprised to see you're a human…- …?) That would be a very stupid and rude thing to say, she realized.

"Our conversation makes you uneasy, right?" he asked, slightly tilting his head to the side with one hand still resting on his hip. A small smile was playing upon his lips, a smile that had nothing to do with mirth "…Well, the feeling's mutual, believe me." he admitted, once more deciding to be honest, since he figured out that would be better. "The fact that we're a team now does not make things easier, now does it?" he asked and she nodded in response. Quite unexpectedly, Sephiroth looked away for the first time, which actually surprised even him. "Fine. Hate me then, if you wish."

Her eyes widened a little, since she had actually managed to catch his expression before he turned away his gaze. Slowly, carefully she shook her head, then smiled; it was a small, uncertain smile. "Stop it." she spoke. "There, you've already said it. It's in the past. I… I want you to know I'm no longer mad at you… And that… of course I can speak for myself only but… and we'll most probably never forget but… I… forgive you. So don't worry about the past, it's alright with me." speaking those words instantly made her feel better, as if a giant burden had been taken off her shoulders. Anyway, not wanting the situation to become even more tense and awkward, she momentarily turned away and started to walk straightahead, without a single look back.

Sephiroth watched her leave and disappear around the corner. Then he leaned himself against a wall, raising a slightly trembling hand to his forehead. Saying he was confused was not enough. Yet still, at the same time, he didn't feel very happy or enthusiastic… quite the opposite, actually.

"I'm not looking for forgiveness…" he whispered.

I'm looking for acceptance.

End of Chapter 4

***

Author's Notes: Ooow! Sweet, stupid, unrealistic… everything I've tried to avoid! Anyway, I can see some progress here: they didn't burst out into tears just a few seconds after they'd met. However, I have to admit I did expect their relationship to progress even more slowly (which means I don't really like the stupid "forgive you" part)… it's just that this fic is not a 300-page novel, right? I don't want to spend my entire life writing it, so I have to start coming to the point. To understand each other, Sephiroth and Aeris have to talk to each other, which means I can't keep them silent or angered forever. If they were both supposed to stay in character, they'd probably never say things like that…

By the way… Why, why, whyyy do you hate Movitriss so much…!? Have you ever fallen in love only to realize you're going to loose your lover very soon…? (ehm… no? …oh, in case you're wondering, her character is NOT based on my personal experience…) Do you imagine how the poor woman may feel!? Movitriss is such a tragic (sob) character (sob…). Some compassion for her, people, please…!

Anyway, regardless of what may happen in the future, Movitriss and Sephiroth are right now spending dangerously much time together… and it's not indifferent to both of them! (Don't be mad at me, KrystalClear! Some things just have to be done… only to make the story better at the end! Don't flame me, Aeris/Seph lovers, 'cause I love you all! I'm a Seph/Aeris person myself, almost blindly devoted to this couple… draw you conclusions!)

So… anybody wanna see what happens next?


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Sephiroth and Aeris belong to Squaresoft (along with my soul ^_^). Prince Evorinth is a character from a book by Anna Brzezinska (I tend to remember the names I like; and Evorinth is a particularly cool one - at least in my opinion - so I "borrowed" it, but the guy's looks & personality are mine… I think. Actually, I'm not able to recall anything about the "original" prince, apart from his name…). The other lads & gents starring or mentioned in this story are figments of my own limited imagination. (However, according to the fact that we're living in the age of postmodernism, I believe that everything has been already invented or thought up before…)

Author's Notes: I felt like giving up this story more than once. It's not that I'm out of ideas. On the contrary, I'm full of them, and that's exactly my problem: I don't want to get rid of anything I've imagined earlier, so I keep writing some unnecessary details which constantly makes me angry at myself. I don't like crossing anything out or changing the bits I've written and got used to. Nevertheless, nobody has flamed my English so far, so I keep going. Simply because I like the ending of this fic (he, he) and need to write it down, arranging all of the images in my head at the same time. However, I'm not doing it for myself only, so I hope you'll keep reading this. (…And sorry for any mistakes. This part was created in a hurry.)

Enjoy the fifth chapter!

***

"Which one do you like the most…?" Movitriss asked, putting a hand under her head and stretching her long legs.

"That one, I think…" Aeris answered, pointing to the pale, reddish moon. "…The one far to the left."

Both women were lying among the wild, lush grass, staring at the clear, blue sky, here and there covered with some white clouds. The four small moons above shone with a gentle light, very faded and faint, yet still visible, even though it was somewhere around midday.

"I like the blue one." Movitriss spoke, after a brief consideration. "And I like this place, too. It's so nice here…" Aeris would have nodded if she hadn't been laying on her back.

"Get up, ladies, it's time to go." Kyro squatted down next to Aeris. "Look!" he raised his hand to the sky. "Our starship's leaving…"

"It's going back into orbit…" Movitriss sighed, closing her eyes.

"Meaning we're stuck here for at least few weeks." Sephiroth, who stood a little in the distance, grumbled. He lowered his voice so that not everybody could hear him. "…And if something unexpected happens…"

"There's absolutely nothing that we're not able to deal with as a team. We'll be fine." Valagar quietly assured him. "All right, people, get up!"

They all listened, lifting themselves from the high grass.

"What's the plan, Valagar?" Movitriss asked, trying to adjust her shirt.

"Well, according to the tracking devices of our starship, the Räelans have already landed but the radar has lost them ever since then. They set down south-west from here, on a giant snowfield that is rather unoccupied by people, as our pilot estimated this morning."

"How far is it?" Aeris asked.

"About two thousand kilometers…"

"What!?" Kyro exclaimed. "Why have _we_ landed _here_, then? It would've been a lot of easier if the starship had taken us to that damned snowfield instantly!"

It wouldn't have been very good if the had seen our landing, you moron, Sephiroth thought. (It's obvious.) He frowned briefly. (I don't really like Valagar's irritating, self-confident attitude very much but I appreciate his wisdom, for he seems to know what he's doing…)

"I wanted our ship to remain unseen." Valagar explained, straightening out his brown robe and lifting his staff of the ground. "Besides, first we're going to pay a small visit to the nearest government. The city is only seventy kilometers ahead."

"Gods, we're in the middle of nowhere, right?" Movitriss frowned. "Without any cars, chocobos or something…"

"Seventy kilometers." Kyro shrugged his arms. "We should get there by tomorrow's dusk, at least, even if we keep dragging along all the time."

"…Right." Valagar agreed. "Besides, Movitriss, I'm afraid that there are no cars on Sandalya. Much of the original Cetran technology went forgotten."

The woman sighed once more and swept her red hair back gracefully. "Oh, well. Then we'll better get going."

Valagar and Kyro nodded and they both started to walk down the hill. Movitriss followed, at the same time looking back to see whether Sephiroth was coming or not, but he just stood there, motionless, as if lost deep in thoughts.

"Walking…?" Aeris moaned quietly.

Sephiroth broke free of his trance, looking at her. He shrugged. "Why not? You'll get used to it." and with that he followed the group, leaving the young woman standing at the top of the hill.

Aeris clenched her teeth. "…And what if I don't want to get used to it?"

***

It was late afternoon when they finally reached Dolnê, the seat of the local prince.

"Here we are." Kyro stated, stopping to wait for the others. A broad trail, paved with cobblestones, led straight to the gates, which were now fully opened and quite crowded.

"Finally." Aeris mumbled. She was a little sore after all the walking but she hadn't complained even once during the entire journey.

"Nice city." Movitriss said, looking at the red roofs sticking out from behind the city walls.

Actually, calling it a city was a big exaggeration, at least in Sephiroth's judgement. Compared to Midgar or to Muar-Svyen-a-Tor, Dolnê was rather a small settlement, composed of not so many houses, accompanied by an imposing, magnificent castle situated on the river. The atmosphere surrounding the town was rather peaceful, even in spite of the many merchants that had pitched their stalls almost everywhere.

They entered the town, not accosted by any guards. They didn't distinguish much from the colorful crowd. Valagar reached into his robes and pulled out a small, silver pentagram, which Sephiroth recognized as a symbol of the Cetra Council. The old man hung the sign on his neck, so that everyone could see it. "This emblem is widely acclaimed across the universe. It should be known here as well."

"Do you think the prince would respect it?" Sephiroth asked in a detached tone of voice.

"How should I know…? However, it would be very unwise of him not to do so." Valagar's voice was serious but not menacing. "Anyway, I would like all of you not to interfere in my negotiations with him, at least not yet. Allow me to talk to him alone."

***

Prince Evorinth leaned back in his expensive, sculptured chair, resting his clasped hands on a table that was made of black oak. He was a considerably young man, nearing forty. His calm, blue eyes had a sharp, focused look. A short black beard framed his narrow face.

"I see." he spoke in a deep, melodious voice. "…So you've here come to warn me…?"

"Yes, prince Evorinth. When I've already acquainted you with the situation, I want to forewarn you of resorting to violence while dealing with the Räelans. As far as I'm concerned, the best strategy is to wait and see what their leaders are up to."

"Wait and see?" Evorinth frowned.

"We don't know their motives yet. We may only speculate whether it is an invasion or not. Therefore, we shall not resort to force before we would be able to state some facts about them. Like the aim of their visit, for example…"

The prince tapped his fingers against the dark table; on those fingers many expensive, jewel-decorated signet rings glittered. In his blue eyes a great deal of skepticism was visible. "Are you telling me this may be no war…?"

"Perhaps." Valagar nodded. "We do not know much about their civilization. I'd rather we waited for their first move, instead of attacking."

"And what if _they_ are preparing an attack right now…? You expect me to sit here idly, with my arms folded…?"

"I suggest you wait." Valagar repeated calmly. "And give us a free hand in dealing with the Räelans. We'll try to talk to them and verify their intentions, then we'll come back to establish the further course of action together."

The silence prolonged. Valagar waited patiently for the prince to consider his offer. Evorinth sat with his head hanging low, toying with one of his many rings, as he did always when he was seriously thinking about something.

"No." Prince Evorinth stood up, and this gesture was a clear hint that the conversation had came to an end. "I don't want you to meddle in the matters of my kingdom. I appreciate your help but I'm the one that would decide about the Räelans, understand? It's my land and my people. And the Räelans are my problem now, not yours. Thanks for the warning, anyway." Valagar didn't answer, he had simply decided to respect Evorinth's decision, because the Council's policy was to interfere as little as possible in the inner matters of other planets. Seeing that the older man remained calm and didn't try to argue, the prince smiled, at the same time bowing his head in a polite gesture, as if repenting his previous, brusque words. "Please, stay here with your friends and wait for the further turn of events, if you wish. I will be honored to have all of you as my beloved guests."

***

"Stay away from the Räelans…?" Sephiroth frowned, taking a mouthful of an appetizing, delicious pheasant.

"Mhm." Movitriss answered, sipping her wine. "That's what Valagar told me. The local prince seems to be a self-admiring idiot, confident about resolving the possible conflict with force. However, we are allowed to stay at his castle as long as we desire… and I quite appreciate that." she added, carefully looking around. There were alone in a small but comfortable dining room, surrounded only by some splendid tapestry and a gentle candlelight. It was dark outside and the crickets had already begun their concert.

"Something's not right here." Sephiroth decided, washing down the pheasant with some red wine.

"Yeah, you're right. I think we should stay put." the woman agreed, wiping her mouth with a white napkin and standing up. "Oh, look." she said, narrowing her eyes in the semidarkness, pointing to the left. "Is that a harp over there? Would you mind if I played something…?"

***

The room was small, cramped and full of books. It smelled of naphthalene and dust; very thick stonewalls added to its claustrophobic atmosphere. A perfect place for a secret meeting, as far as Patrick was concerned.

"You wished to see me, my lord…?" he bowed low, putting his right hand on his heart. He was a small, sinewy man, but he knew well that appearance was not the thing that mattered the most, for it was his intelligence that made him one of the Evorinth's most trusted people.

The prince turned around to see his spy. "You heard my earlier conversation with Valagar, didn't you?" he asked Patrick, who, of course, nodded. "Well, I want to get rid of the Räelans as soon as possible. Find me the most talented magicians, spies, informers and localize the…" he paused, since the idea of an interstellar vessel was still new to him. "…_ship's_ current position. Start gathering an army."

"Yes, my lord."

Evorinth took off one of his emerald rings and started to toy with it in his fingers. A faint, dispassionate smile formed on his thick lips. "…And bring me Valagar, tied up but alive. Every piece of information is valuable. He said he didn't know the… flying ship's location, but maybe some tortures would get anything out of him."

Patrick bowed for the third time. "What about the rest of the Cetra, my lord?"

There was no hesitation in Evorinth's voice. "They will only stand in my way. Kill them tonight." the prince said. "Kill them all."

***

Aeris sat down in front of the mirror and started to comb through her long, brown hair. She was tired because of their fifty-mile-long hike and she was really looking forward to having some rest. The last nightfall caught them in the open air and since she had expected some unknown animals to attack them anytime, she didn't have much sleep that night.

(I'm tired… so tired… Never thought I could be so tired…)

Still wearing a simple, cotton dress, she threw a brief glance at the large, comfortable bed standing at the opposite wall of the room, where a white, silk nightdress lay. Aeris resisted the temptation to jump into the bed just as she was, without finishing her evening toilet.

(I wish they had running water here… Maybe living in Midgar was not that bad after all… and I guess I'll miss my mom's house in the Promised Land, too.) She sighed. (Gods, those stonewalls are not particularly warm… central heating is definitely quite a nice thing.)

She suddenly paused and winced, scolding herself in her thoughts.

(Yes, but the price to pay is too high… if the central heating comes from draining mako and killing the Planet… Maybe it's very well that they haven't invited such a thing here…)

She put the tortoise-shell comb aside and slowly stood up, allowing her soft hair to spread over her shoulders. She paused. Even though there was perfect silence inside the room, Aeris couldn't hear any footsteps outside. Her senses, however, told her that something was wrong. Before she had been able to figure out what it was, in her mirror she suddenly saw the door opening very, very slowly and carefully, without a single creak. She froze.

The door opened, revealing a tall, calm man with a dagger in his hand. Aeris spun around and her face went pale. She was alone. And weaponless, for she knew her staff was laying next to her bag, at the opposite corner of the room.

I won't have enough time to reach it, she realized, let alone the skills necessary to defeat a trained killer.

As if reading her thoughts apart from noticing the woman was aware of his presence, the assassin decided to act quickly. He kicked the door wide open and rushed into the room. Aeris didn't even have enough time to scream.

***

Without a single noise another guard fell to the floor, still clutching the handle of his sword.

"Sorry, pal." Kyro spoke quietly, not eager to alarm dozens of other watchmen. "It's nothing personal… May the Gods bless your soul… or something." he wiped away the blood from his blade. Meanwhile, Movitriss was busy untying and saddling the chocobos, then taking them out of the stable.

"What about Sephiroth? And Aeris…?" she complained, jumping onto the saddle.

"Don't worry about them. We need to get going." Valagar answered.

"Evorinth's immeasurable hospitality went beyond my expectations." Kyro sneered at nobody in particular. "Have you ever hoped for such a warm reception, Valagar?"

"Well, actually, not." Valagar admitted, carefully climbing onto the bird's back. "The prince's reaction is unfortunate and makes everything a little more difficult, but don't worry, it won't thwart our plans."

***

The assassin didn't even manage to make a single step forward, for suddenly a black-gloved hand grasped him from the behind, covering his mouth. Before the man had found enough time to use his dagger, a quick blow to the back of his throat dispatched him of consciousness. And life. He fell to the floor with a broken neck. Everything happened so fast that Aeris didn't even start screaming. Shocked and terrified, she looked up from the assassin's motionless face, set in a grimace of panic.

Sephiroth stood in the doorway. He kicked the lifeless body to the side, stepping over it and entering the room, quickly closing the door. Aeris was still too frightened to cry out. Sephiroth was weaponless, but she had just seen him killing an armed man with his bare hands, hadn't she?

With a lot of effort she kept the presence of mind. "What happened…?" she blurted out. "Who was this man and what are you both doing in the middle of the night in my room!?" she demanded a little too loudly.

"An murderer sent to kill you." Sephiroth said, coming up straight to her. "Be quiet."

"An assassin!? Why!?" her eyes widened in disbelief.

"Apparently, Prince Evorinth decided to get rid of all of us." he answered, looking around the room. "This place will be swarming with guards very soon."

"What!? You're not serious, are you!?"

He threw her a brief, annoyed glance. "Yeah, right, I'm kidding and this man over there is a mirage."

Aeris fell silent. "…But why!?" she repeated after a few seconds. "Why would have Evorinth ordered to kill us!?"

"Don't scream." he hissed at her. "I'll tell you later. Now we need to get out of here."

"Where's Valagar?" she demanded.

"Already on his way with the others. We're supposed to join them in a village called Vaal. C'mon!"

"I'm not going anywhere with you-" she protested, frightened and angry at the same time.

"Quiet!" he said impatiently, grasping her wrist with both hands. She instantly fell silent, perplexed by his gesture. He paused, narrowing his eyes and suddenly looking away, at the door. Thanks to his "improved", sensitive hearing he could actually detect nearing footsteps in the distance. "The guards are coming." he let go of her, taking a step back. "Do you really want to stay in your room?"

She hesitated, not particularly happy with the fact that now she had to depend on a man who she didn't have any confidence in. Meanwhile, Sephiroth was looking at her expectantly. He was not afraid but Aeris' distrust was at least annoying. He wanted to disappear before the guards would arrive, because he simply didn't feel like killing all of them right now. He had decided that following Valagar's plan and avoiding any turmoil would be the best thing to do.

"Look." he frowned. "Are you staying here to die or coming with me? If so, hurry."

Her delay didn't last very long, for she could also hear the distant voices now.

"…Alright. What about my things? My staff?"

"Forget about them." he quickly came up to the window and opened it. Looking outside, he narrowed his blue-green eyes, as if considering something. "Come here. Can you see a cornice running down there? And that rifted column below us?"

Aeris saw it, momentarily realizing what he had in mind. "What!?" she whispered harshly. "You're not thinking about that, are you…?"

"It's only ten meters to the ground. You'll be fine, trust me."

"But it's high! And dark!"

"After you." he said coldly and she could swear she saw a flicker of a mocking smile playing upon his lips. Going down a narrow, slippery column was the last thing she wanted to do now. But it was not that she had any choice…

"Gods…" she made a hurried sign of a pentagram and started to climb down. It went better than she would have thought, actually, and the next minute she was already standing on the ground, able to heave a sigh of relief. Seeing she was safe, Sephiroth stepped outside the room, onto the broad ledge. And then, without a single moment of hesitation, he jumped, performing a perfect somersault in mid-air, landing softly and agilely on his feet. Aeris gasped.

"C'mon!" he said, grasping her arm and pulling her roughly. "There's no time to waste!"

They run quickly through the inner courtyard, which appeared deserted. If Aeris had been able to see in the darkness as well as Sephiroth could, she would have seen a few bodies of dead or unconscious watchman, scattered here and there. But she couldn't see anything and maybe it was for the better.

"Hey!" suddenly somebody yelled behind them. "Stop right where you are!" Sephiroth turned around to see a few guards running from around the corner.

"Not now!" he moaned and turned to Aeris. "The stable's over there." he pushed her in the right direction. "Run."

She made a few steps but suddenly stopped, turning around. "What about you?" she hesitated.

"Run." he hissed. "I'll join you in a moment."

She listened to him and broke into a run, a minute later rushing into the stable, which was poorly lit with some torches. She spotted a bloodied body lying next to the entrance and froze. Before she had managed overcome her reluctance and do anything, a short, muffled scream from behind told her another life was lost, and a moment later Sephiroth run into the stable.

"What are you doing!?" he frowned. "Get the birds!"

The first second she ignored him, then suddenly spun around in his direction. "Who do you think I am, an amazon!? I've never ridden a chocobo before!" she complained. "At least…" she added, blushing for no apparent reason, as a memory of Cloud crossed through her mind. "…not alone."

Sephiroth threw her a strange glance and he pressed the reigns into her hand. "It high time you learned, then." before Aeris had time to react, he grabbed her by the waist, firmly but carefully at the same time, and rather unceremoniously threw her onto the broad saddle. Aeris squealed in surprise.

"But…" she finally got her voice back and the first thing she did was to protest.

"Just hold on tight." he said, effortlessly jumping onto another bird's back and leaning forward to grasp Aeris chocobo's bridle.

Wait!, she wanted to yell but suddenly Sephiroth whistled sharply through clenched teeth and both mounts raced forward. Aeris clung to the bird's back with her entire body, fearing for her dear life. She squeezed her eyes tightly against the merciless wind. They were galloping at full speed now and she felt a shudder of panic going down her spine.

(I'm gonna fall down, I'm gonna fall!)

"After them!" she heard the soldiers shouting. She was so afraid of falling of the saddle that she didn't even find enough courage to turn back her head and see how far the guards were. "Do something!" she cried out to Sephiroth.

"Like… kill them, for instance?" he smiled but the smile went unnoticed in the darkness. "They would only pursue us even more virulently, if I did anything like that. Relax." he shrugged. "We've taken the best chocobos. The morons that are chasing us don't even stand a chance."

Fortunately for both of them, Sephiroth was right. The guards lagged behind very soon. Perhaps Evorinth ordered them to stop or maybe they were simply kind of reluctant to chase "the powerful Cetra mages", nevertheless, the sounds of the pursuit quickly died away in the distance. Aeris and Sephiroth dashed away into the night, leaving the monumental castle behind, looming black against the starry sky.

End of Chapter 5

***

Author's Notes: Everyone's favorite couple, Seph and Aeris, finally alone…? Just after Seph had sort of saved Aeris' life…? So romaaaantic! Nah, it's too idyllic to be true or lasting… something really bad has to happen very soon… he, he.

If you're interested in the next part, please let me know. The more reviews I'll become, the more motivated I'll be… and the sooner I'll post the sixth chapter! (The fifth one was kinda delayed 'cause a few days ago I started to read James Joyce's "Ulysses", which really IS a time-consuming activity…) Anyway… just review, say anything you have in mind, c'mon, don't let me down! As usually, I'm counting on your critical comments!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Not mine. Shall we proceed to the next part now…?  
  
Special announcement: Before I'll start this chapter, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to read and review this fic. You're really wonderful to keep your interest in this, despite having a variety of other, better stories. I just want you to know I'm happy. And very, very grateful.  
  
Author's Notes: Attention, please! This is a nice, long Aeris-Sephy chapter, in which they are actually getting closer to each other… but!, they're still not that close, oh no, no kissing stuff, this is a serious story, remember? However, their little evening talk was a real pleasure to write and I hope you'll enjoy reading it as well. Nevertheless, keep in mind that not everything is settled yet… Anyway, I know Seph's attitude and behavior might be a little OOC, but hey, that's the point about writing a fan fiction, right? Because… would the real FF7 Sephiroth say anything different from: "Prepare for your death, Aeris! Mwahahaha! I'm going to become one with the Planet!" Let me know what you think about his character in this story. Is he too sensitive? 'Cause, you know, in case you didn't notice, he actually has feelings… Or maybe he's too cynical? For saying (and meaning) he doesn't care much, being selfish, acting for no other reason than saving his own life? Read this chapter and decide.  
  
* * *  
  
"My bottom hurts." Aeris complained. "Let's stop for a while." she moaned.  
  
Sephiroth didn't answer this time, either, not that she expected him to. This was the second day of their journey. All this time he silently rode a few steps ahead of her, occasionally talking with her, but almost never turning around. They needed to avoid main roads, so they kept following a barely noticeable and pretty unused path in the middle of a forest.  
  
"I said…" Aeris repeated, much louder this time, to get any sort of attention from him. "…that I'm tired and wanna have a break!"  
  
That, at least, had some effect on the man. "Stop it." he finally spoke, annoyed, loosing his composure and turning back in the saddle. Aeris sighed excessively, rolling her eyes. Sephiroth snorted at her in response.  
  
"You know what?" she started once again, being a naturally talkative person she couldn't keep the silence much longer. "You're being annoying. Especially this afternoon."  
  
Sephiroth shrugged. "You're not the only tired person here. Or annoyed by a fellow traveler." he added with a smirk.  
  
"Maybe, but at least you're used to riding a chocobo, whereas I am not!" she didn't even rise her voice this time. Yes, she was kind of angry and exhausted, but at the same time thankful for being alive and having anybody to talk to. Strangely enough, she found herself growing accustomed to Sephiroth's company. They left the castle only two days ago, but she was already regarding his presence as something, well… natural. She was slowly but surely beginning to learn how to ignore his indifferent, sarcastic attitude. Now she knew better than to jump at every sharper tone in his voice.  
  
"You realize as well as I do that we cannot stay here."  
  
"I know, I know! …But I'm not talking about staying here for a night! Oh, c'mon! Just a little pause!"  
  
It was like reasoning with a wall, but this time, as he was wearing thin on patience, she managed to get some livelier reaction out of him. "Stop complaining, for Gods' sake!"  
  
"Let's establish some facts." she argued. "I'm on a strange, alien planet, involved in a conflict I personally have nothing to do with, trying to save the entire world from something I've never seen. Right now I'm in a middle of a forest, with no spare clothes, no money, and, most importantly, no weapon, with a man that used to be my enemy only a few weeks ago. There are assassins hot on my heels, since the local prince wants to kill me. And my bottom hurts. Now, could there be a worse thing to complain about…?"  
  
Suddenly a loud noise broke the silence of the forest. Simultaneously, Sephiroth and Aeris both looked at the path in front of them.  
  
"Oh shit."  
  
"Exactly." Sephiroth agreed, pulling the reigns back and making the chocobo stop. The bird's yellow feathers bristled up.  
  
The creature that emerged from the bushes was about five meters long. It resembled a giant, overgrown grasshopper. A very big, ugly grasshopper, indeed, with sharp, white teeth and thick, repulsive feelers.  
  
"Looks like a hungry monster to me." Aeris stated. She managed to stay calm, but her face unintentionally turned pale.  
  
"No kidding."  
  
"Don't act so damn cool!" she riposted, pretty much pissed off at his sarcasm. "We're weaponless. Now what!?"  
  
* * *  
  
Vaal welcomed them with a nice aroma of fresh-baked bread, merchants' excited shouts and children's joyful laughter. It was a fairly big town; its paved streets and solid, stone houses created an atmosphere of prosperity.  
  
"I need a bath. …You think they have any public baths here?"  
  
"Later, Movitriss, later… I have to eat something first." Kyro moaned. "This smell's driving me crazy…"  
  
"Let's go to the marketplace. We'll certainly find all the things you want right there."  
  
Following Valagar's suggestion, they rode up to the main square, carefully looking around. It was an early afternoon, which meant lots of people were out on the streets, taking care of their business. They all looked liked like common city dwellers - colorful clothes, raised voices, hands that moved very quickly.  
  
"Look." Kyro suddenly said.  
  
Five strange men were sitting next to the fountain, basking in the sun. They didn't resemble merchants at all, wearing white, ornamented clothes, carrying weapons with them. Strange stillness surrounded them, as if the townspeople knew that those men meant trouble. Noticing Valagar's small group, they all stood up. Nimbly, but not too quickly. They were obviously cautious, but not afraid.  
  
"They seem to have waited here for us…" Valagar observed.  
  
Movitriss sighed. "Evorinth's assassins?"  
  
"Oh, how nice." Kyro said, narrowing his young, brown eyes and drawing out every syllable, intentionally making his words sound ironical. "A welcoming committee… What have we done to be worth of such an honor?" he raised his voice to be sure the men heard him well. He also didn't try to conceal the fact that he had laid his hand on the sword's handle.  
  
"Watch out…" Movitriss whispered. "They're all mages, not just swordsmen…"  
  
One of the men, quite young, and yet obviously the group's leader, stepped forward. "By the order of His Majesty, Prince Evorinth of Haghia, you are to drop your weapons and follow us. Put no resistance and you will live."  
  
"Liar." Kyro snorted, with the other hand violently pulling the reigns of his chocobo, making the bird dance at the spot. "We all know the prince wants us dead."  
  
Before the assassin had came with any answer, Valagar started to descend from his mount, moving slowly and carefully.  
  
"I'm getting too old for this…" he sighed, supporting his bodyweight on his staff. When he had straightened himself, however, he did not resemble an old, infirm man, but a strong and powerful one. Then he spoke, his voice clear and confident. "You do not know who are you starting with, young lad. Step aside and let us proceed, so that no harm would be done to you or any of your comrades."  
  
"We have our orders." the young mage replied. "Withdrawal is out of the question. Are you about to surrender?"  
  
Kyro gave a snort of disregard. "No way, you moron."  
  
The contemptuous comment didn't throw the sorcerer off the track. "What is your final response?" he ignored the remark with his eyes fixed on Valagar's face.  
  
The Cetra frowned, shaking his head. "I despise using violence when unnecessary, but I'm afraid we won't let you carry out your lord's orders." His voice hardened. "Step aside or we'll fight."  
  
"You've brought it upon yourself, old man!" the young mage raised his arm into the air. "Kill the others, as planned" he told his companions, then turned back to Valagar. "You'll go with us, no matter what. Let me convince you with…"  
  
* * *  
  
"Disintegrate." Sephiroth said in a voice that lacked any excitement, dispassionately waving his hand at the monster, as if shrugging off some completely unimportant matter.  
  
In a blink of an eye his fingertips exploded with a brilliant light that shot in the creature's direction, engulfing it with a flame of pure energy. The world went white for a second, making Aeris gasp and shield her eyes from the brightness. And when she lowered her arm, the monster was gone. It had simply disappeared. Evaporated. Only some remains of thin smoke marked the place where the creature stood only a second ago.  
  
Aeris' eyes widened in disbelief. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she got a chance to vocalize her astonishment, something else had happened. The spell so frightened Sephiroth's chocobo that it reared up all of a sudden. Even being an excellent rider, Sephiroth, caught off guard, didn't manage to stay in the saddle. He lost his balance and plummeted into the thicket that grew by the path.  
  
"Wark?" the bird inquired, leaning over the fallen man.  
  
Sephiroth muttered something quiet, quick and incomprehensible in Wutaian, then looked up at the animal, which was now calm as usual, nudging his arm with its beak. "Uh. Get off me, you traitorous bastard." Sephiroth said with a great deal of annoyance, but no trace of real anger in his voice, then sat up in the bushes. There were some tiny leaves and twigs in his long, braided hair.  
  
"Um…" Aeris could only stare at the sight, eyes wide and mouth not entirely closed. "Er… do you need any help…?"  
  
He did not. In the twinkling of an eye he was back on his feet, trying to free the chocobo, since its bridle became entangled in the thicket. He threw Aeris an irritated glance, as if everything that happened was somehow her fault. Feeling slightly uncomfortable, the younger woman quickly looked away. Then her eyes caught the sight of the dead monster, or rather the very few remnants of it.  
  
"How did you do this!?" she exclaimed, instantly forgetting about everything else.  
  
Sephiroth stopped his struggle with the bridle. "Did what…?" he frowned at her, not entirely understanding what was the whole excitement about.  
  
"Cast a spell without materia! And, Gods, what kind of spell that was! And the way you cast it… Not even any kind of an incantation! How's that possible!?"  
  
He looked at her as if she was out of her mind all of a sudden, then arched a silver eyebrow at her. "…Excuse me…? You're a Cetra and you don't even know that…?"  
  
"Know what?" now it was her turn to look slightly dumbfounded.  
  
"Never mind." he turned away, so that she could not see the sparks of amusement in his eyes, and took up what he had been doing, briefly wondering whether he should remain expressionless or not. …But he simply couldn't help himself. He paused once again and, without any warning, burst out laughing.  
  
Aeris gawked at him, perplexed by his behavior. That laugh was so… human. Slightly ironic, yet still humorous, and most importantly not the creepy, madman laugh she remembered. Well, it was actually… nice; the way he laughed. Much like his voice: deep and melodious. And besides, it quickly turned out to be contagious. Aeris put her hands on her hips, wanting to giggle for no apparent reason… and suddenly she remembered she didn't know the explanation of his joy. She suspected it had something to do with her question about the spell.  
  
"What!? she snapped. "What are you laughing at!?"  
  
"Well, isn't that obvious?" he answered, turning around to face her; still amused, but quickly returning to his normal, composed self. "…Us."  
  
* * *  
  
The night was falling slowly, but surely over the quiet forest. A warm wind moved every treetop, gently caressing slender branches and making leaves dance, while the grass simply bent gracefully under its soothing breath. Far above the ground the four moons shone, now clearly visible against the darkening sky.  
  
Aeris and Sephiroth sat in the middle of a small clearing, warming themselves up with a fire that crackled happily in the stillness of the evening. Although they had left the castle in haste, without taking any equipment or supplies, they were now a little better prepared for the incoming journey. Early this morning they had made a small dash for a village situated on the edge of the forest and stolen some goods from unaware, absent villagers, most probably working in the fields. Aeris had been against breaking in some innocent people's houses, but Sephiroth ignored her objections. It's either that, he had said, shrugging, or we'll have a very unpleasant, cold and hungry night. Then he had added he had never actually stolen anything before - Aeris suspected he most probably never needed to, working for Shinra - but it was clear that he had no great moral reservations about it.  
  
Nevertheless, disregarding their different points of view, they were now the undeserved owners of a few practical things, like blankets, for example. Most importantly, they managed to get some food - vegetables along with chicken meat. Their remains, in a form of soup, now rested in a pot they had taken from a farmer's fence. The soup was delicious and, although at the beginning she had been a little reluctant to eat it, Aeris ate her portion to the last droplet.  
  
(So I'm a thief now. Oh, well…)  
  
She allowed herself to relax, leaning her back against a fallen tree trunk, wrapping a woolen blanket - a stolen one, of course - tighter around her arms. (I'm glad it's summer now… How come that an evening in a forest is actually warmer than one in a castle?) The whole day she was constantly worrying about spending another night in the open field, in the middle of the not-so-safe forest, but now it somehow ceased to bother her, it no longer mattered. The lack of her staff still unnerved her, but the earlier encounter with the monster convinced her that maybe she won't need a weapon after all, at least not tonight.  
  
(Am I slowly getting used to such life…?), she asked herself. (And, most importantly… am I really starting to get used to him? To relax in his company? Well… it seems so…) She surpessed a small, ironic smile. (I wouldn't believe it a couple of days ago, though…)  
  
She frowned, throwing a brief, furtive glance in Sephiroth's direction.  
  
(Who is he, really?)  
  
She didn't like it when people made her feel confused. And this man was confusing like hell. Alright, she thought, narrowing her eyes, so he's a very handsome man indeed, especially with that delicate child-like face of his… (And a damn complicated man with a mysterious past, uncertain future, such as mine, and… and I guess I'm not making his present life any better… Does he hate me? Does he even notice my presence? I wish I knew what he's thinking right now… It seems strange but… I want to get to know him better. I want to know what's going on inside his head…)  
  
A sick fascination, she scolded herself in her thoughts. And clenched her fists so tight it almost hurt. Damn. He was fascinating, there was no doubt in that.  
  
As if reading her thoughts somehow, Sephiroth looked up from the fire. Aeris blushed and she could only hope the man won't notice anything in a dim light of the evening. A vain hope, she suddenly realized, remembering how improved his senses were.  
  
"You look panicked." Sephiroth observed quietly. "Something's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing." she reassured him quickly, perhaps too quickly to make it sound believable. "It's nothing."  
  
"You're being awfully quiet for such a cheerful extrovert, you know…" as usually, Aeris wasn't sure whether he was serious or ironical.  
  
"I'm tired." she hastily lied.  
  
"Fine." he sighed and Aeris could have sworn there was a tone of resignation in his voice.  
  
She lowered her head.  
  
Sephiroth frowned.  
  
It was impossible; the way she affected him. He could barely stand her presence, yet, at the same time, he desired it. And no matter how much irritating she was, how much awkward and guilty she made him feel, with a strange mixture of fear and confusion he discovered he was growing attracted to her. To make things worse, she was starting to appeal to him as a woman.  
  
Which made him angry… at himself, for not being able to entirely control his emotions. Love or desire was something he'd rather not face. Especially not now, when he felt more insecure than ever.  
  
Well, it's not that he had no woman before. I've seen women that were more beautiful than her, he thought. (I've even slept with some of them… but still… she is…)  
  
Beautiful  
  
The women from his past had been usually cold, intelligent, rich and damn attractive. Mostly from Midgar, from the upper class, a little snobbish, speaking with harsh, Midgarian accent, the language he never considered as his own. Not that it really disturbed him. Of course they had meant something to him. All the relationships did, although it was only his feelings that mattered, his mood to take care of. He had never got himself involved, at least not emotionally, even if he had liked some of them quite much, almost to the point of getting attached. Even if he had heard "I love you" being whispered into his ear more than just a few times. He never considered any woman as his friend, let alone his love.  
  
The problem was, he had never actually believed them. Had they really loved him? Or had it been merely a desire? Love, unlike most feelings, was something a little too much abstract for him to grasp. He had been reluctant to trust them, hell, reluctant to trust anybody, not after the way he had been raised. Afraid. Afraid of making a fool of himself. Afraid of ending up insecure and dependant. Was the risk of being hurt afterwards worth the short little bit of happiness? He had never really figured it out.  
  
…And now he was sitting in front of a woman who was beginning to grow on him. For the first time it was the other way around; he was becoming interested, whereas the other person didn't seem to care. It was something entirely new to him, which made him feel surprised.  
  
(Why do I care…? Or do I? Is there really anything special about her? …Why do I have this strange, overwhelming impression she's different from anyone I've ever met?)  
  
Aeris was alluring, sensual, and yet warm and innocent at the same time. The way she fluttered her long, dark eyelashes, the way her exquisite green eyes sparkled with emotion… even if that emotion was anger, he couldn't resist the feeling that those eyes were absolutely gorgeous. The way her nut-brown hair moved softly in the evening breeze… The grace of her movements, when she was brushing aside the loose strands from her eyes. Her gentle face and elegant hands with those delicate fingers… Her slender waist…  
  
But is was still her inner warmth, not her looks, that made her appear that beautiful. (She's so damn charismatic…) One might have asked how could Sephiroth sense this inner warmth if all they had been doing so far was to quarrel and avoid talking or looking at each other at all… but he simply knew. Being not entirely human, to some extent he possessed the same gift of empathy as Aeris did, which allowed him to feel people's inner aura. However, he rarely made use of it and quickly learned not to rely upon it. As a child he experienced so much hatred, contempt, disregard, that he had simply learned to block this gift, not letting it bother his cold, logical and reasonable thinking. Emotions usually hurt.  
  
She'll never be mine.  
  
He realized it with such firmness, that it felt like a bucket of ice-cold water. (I can as well forget about her right now. She's… Damn, she's so…)  
  
Perfect  
  
"Sephiroth…" Aeris spoke quietly, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs.  
  
Lost in his thoughts, he didn't even notice that he was staring. No, not at her. He was too cautious to let his interest in her be visible like that. Keeping his mind on Aeris, he was staring into the sparkling fire.  
  
…But I might as well try to treat her differently, he resolved. (Better. The way she deserves to be treated…)  
  
"Yes…?" he looked up, finally meeting her eyes.  
  
"I was thinking…" she hesitated, trying to choose some better words for what she planned to say, but to no avail. "That… well… I shouldn't have acted that way… Those past two days I was constantly yelling and complaining, and arguing… oh, well. …Angry no matter what you did and how polite you were. Sorry about that."  
  
"Forget it." he said simply, turning his head away. (Now, she has a right to be angry… For I happened to kill her, right…?)  
  
"I want to… thank you. For helping me… you know. If it were not you for you, I would be dead now."  
  
(It's absurd, that of all people, she said it…) "Never mind." he repeated.  
  
"Sephiroth?"  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"Why are you helping me?"  
  
He didn't even twitch, but the question caught him off guard. He didn't let her see his expression changing and quickly composed himself, though.  
  
(Because I have to… Yes, that's right, but why exactly do I feel like I'm doing the right thing? Why am I acting that way, in the first place?)  
  
Where's the girl, Kyro asks, looking around. Aeris's still in her room, Valagar answers. But we need to hurry! - a concerned, but impatient remark - Will she be alright? A short pause, they're all thinking. Go. - his own voice - I'll get her. Kyro's surprised, but so is Sephiroth himself. Fine, Valagar decides. We'll see you both in Vaal. Movitriss' voice… worried? Please, watch out for yourself, Sephiroth…  
  
(But that evening I cared nothing… right? Right……?)  
  
(To the hell with your hesitation. Lie now. Tell her something so she would get off your back. You're silent for too long. She'll get suspicious…)  
  
"Sephiroth…?"  
  
He opened his eyes. They shone in the darkness of the evening. "Because I decided so. Maybe because Valagar told me I have no choice but act that way. Maybe because I feel like I owe it to your parents. Or maybe 'cause I'm bored without having any better thing to do… Forget it."  
  
She was speechless for a while. "You owe it to my parents?"  
  
"I said, forget it."  
  
They sat in utter silence, broken only by the sound of crickets chirping, staring into the fire for a long, very long time.  
  
"Sephiroth…?"  
  
(Man, she's stubborn…)  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"I want you to know… No matter what happened between us in the past, I trust you now."  
  
"Hm?" he raised his head quite rapidly, blinking. "Why did you say that?"  
  
Confusion flooded over him. (What is she trying to achieve? First her forgiveness, now her trust. Funny… 'Cause I don't even trust myself now. Not after I've seen what I'm capable of.)  
  
"Because… I think you might have needed that…"  
  
He snickered, but said nothing at first. (Needed what? I don't like being pitied. …You think I'm a fool?) "Well, thank you for your warm compassion." he finally spoke. There was an unmistakable cold fury in his composed voice.  
  
"Don't be mad at me." she opposed. "I chose to be sincere with you."  
  
"I'm not mad." he repeated in a cold, detached tone of voice. "No offence taken."  
  
Aeris' cheeks were flushed in sudden anger as her eyes sparked. "Do you have any idea how much such a confession cost me!?"  
  
"Showing your mercy?" he shrugged. "…You think I'd need it?"  
  
"Well, I meant it for real! I said I trust you and you can as well believe it or just keep your sarcastic and reserved attitude." she clenched her teeth. "I don't really care."  
  
"Foolish girl." he said, and this time there was no fury or sarcasm in his words. "You'd better watch out whom you are giving your trust to…" these words were not meant to hurt or threaten her, and somehow Aeris knew it, maybe from the serious expression in his eyes. "Well, we might as well ponder it later. It's quite late and we need our rest."  
  
"Then go to sleep." she said, no longer angered. "I sincerely doubt you have slept at all in those two days… I'll be on guard. I'll wake you up in case anything happens."  
  
"I thought you were incredibly tired? I recall you mentioning it a few dozen of times."  
  
She scowled at his another mockery. "I'll be fine. Tomorrow we'll reach Vaal and sleep in nice, comfortable beds, right? I can stay awake just for tonight."  
  
This time he smiled only half-mockingly. "No way. You'll be tired and impossible to get along with. I'd rather die from boredom or insomnia tonight than have to deal with your bad mood tomorrow."  
  
* * *  
  
Next afternoon they reached Vaal, just as Aeris had said. But their first impression was that maybe they won't get a chance to sleep in an inn, after all.  
  
"Something's wrong." Aeris spoke, lowering her voice, as they rode down the street. "It's so quiet here… Look at all those people… They should be doing something, not just standing like that…"  
  
Sephiroth nodded, his delicate, silver eyebrows settled in a deep frown. The silence unnerved him, too. His senses told him there was no danger nearby, but still, something was definitely not the way it should be. "Yes, that's quite an apt comment…"  
  
"I don't like it here." Aeris decided. "I don't like it at all…"  
  
So far, nobody took notice of two strangers, so they quickly proceed down the street. People were standing in small groups, whispering among themselves. There was fear evident on their faces. A few minutes later the two riders reached the center of Vaal. And momentarily stopped.  
  
"Oh gods." was all Aeris managed to say, making a slow sign of the pentagram across her chest. Sephiroth didn't say anything, he only frowned, a hint of green color flashed in his eyes.  
  
The buildings that once had surrounded the marketplace, were now in ashes, only some walls still stood among the debris. All stalls gone. All trees burned to the ground. And a giant, gaping hole in the ground in the middle of everything. A hole that cowered almost the entire square.  
  
Sephiroth wrinkled his nose. "Funny…" he said.  
  
"What's so funny?" Aeris asked.  
  
He didn't answer her at once. "The smell… Can't you feel it…?"  
  
Aeris sniffed the air for a while, then shook her head negative. "No… I can't feel anything… …Perhaps your sense of smell is simply better…"  
  
"Perhaps…" visibly unconvinced, Sephiroth jumped down from his chocobo.  
  
Aeris look at him. There was fear in her eyes. "Sephiroth… What happened here?"  
  
  
  
End of Chapter 6  
  
* * *  
  
Author's Notes: Only devil knows that… and of course the author of this fic… which happens to be the same person ^_^ (Are you curious? So let me give away this secret - a big Meteor fell and killed Movitriss on the spot… Nah, quit dreaming, orthodox Seph-Aeris lovers! I'm not finished with her yet! Do you know how much time I spent thinking up her name!?)  
  
About Sephy sleeping with some people in the past… Well, I like the fics that portrait him a poor, unloved outcast, incapable of accepting or even realizing somebody's feelings, constantly afraid of the human touch. I like them very, very much, which still doesn't change the fact that No choice left is different. So get used to the thought of Sephy having lots of girls in the past. Oh, c'mon! The guy's hot! Imagine: young, very attractive, in his early twenties, rich, single… (*Starts sweating with saliva trickling down her chin*) I bet lots of Midgarian chicks would have done everything to touch him, let alone sleep with him! Don't worry, for it would have no big impact on the story. Just keep in mind he's not entirely a poor, lost boy.  
  
OK, OK, before some of you'll flame me to death - AERIS is SPECIAL to him, right? Their relationship is much more emotional than physical. She's not a nymphomaniac, neither is Sephy a sexually obsessed lunatic. This is not an NC-17 fic. Holding hands will be enough… (Uh… maybe not… well… whatever…)  
  
ANYWAY! Last but not least: a message for those who are not bored with this story yet… As usually, to make me move my lazy fingers and create the next part, type down a few words of encouragement. Please, review! 


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Sephiroth or Aeris. However, I do own Kyro, Movitriss, Valagar, some assassins, a bunch of townspeople, a few monsters and places like Vaal. And my head. And a keyboard. Together it makes a fine story, don't you think? ;)  
  
Author's Notes: The stupid past perfect tense still remains a complete mystery to me, much like the usage of (in)definite articles. Sorry, and thanks for your tolerance. Another long chapter awaits you, with Aeris and Sephiroth being as usually the main characters. Movitriss&Co. are going to be back, though, so quit this merry laugh at once! ^_~ (…And Sephiroth says there would be no more Meteors, firstly 'cause he's finished with them and secondly 'cause he loves Movitriss… he, he… He's almost as evil as I am… he, he…) As usually, written in haste, 'cause I can't wait to see this story coming to the point… someday. …Ahem… Anybody remembers the question Aeris asked at the very end of the last chapter? Well, here goes the answer… or should I say the lack of it? Enjoy.  
  
* * *  
  
"I wish I knew." Sephiroth replied with a disarming sincerity.  
  
"But I thought…"  
  
"I'm as much confused as you are. And I don't like it here, either. Let's ask those people." he stated and left, not waiting for her to answer.  
  
Aeris shook her read and walked up to several people standing next to a ruined house. "Um… Excuse me?" she began. "Could you please tell me what was the cause of this terrible damage…?" the people eyed her suspiciously, instantly noticing her slightly different clothes and a different accent; the trademarks of a foreigner. They ignored her and took up the discussion, occasionally throwing glances in her direction. It made Aeris feel uneasy. She loudly cleared her throat. "Well…" she started politely once more. "I'm looking for three people… An old, tall man, a red-haired woman and a handsome, blonde guy… Have you seen somebody like that, perhaps?"  
  
"Of course we've seen them." a middle-aged woman grumbled and spat on the ground. "Those troublemakers… Are you their friend?" Aeris nodded wearily, not liking the woman's expression. "Well, they got out of here yesterday. And left a message for… Alice, or something… hell, and that other name was…"  
  
"Um, it's Aeris. And Sephiroth."  
  
"Whatever…" the woman spat again. "Here, take it and leave as soon as possible…"  
  
Aeris took the folded piece of paper, decorated with the symbol of the Cetra Council. "Sephiroth!" she yelled, turning around, but he was nowhere in sight. A moment later he spotted him standing far away, immersed in a talk with some other people. Well, I can as well read it myself, she decided and carefully unfolded the letter. It was quite long, written hastily, but in an elegant handwriting that was pleasing to the eye. Aeris bit her lower lip.  
  
"Dear friends, - the message read - In case you are wondering, we are all fine, but we had to leave Vaal in haste, not being able to wait there for you. Please, you should hurry and follow us to a place called Sétif. Stay as vigilant as possible, because it is no longer safe on Sandalya. The reason we left…"  
  
…She never got a chance to read the message to the end.  
  
* * *  
  
"Why else would they be sending scouts…?" Kyro argued.  
  
"Now, we can only assume it was a scout… And we don't know if it destroyed that town on purpose." Movitriss interrupted him and took out another apple from her bag, tossing it in Kyro's direction. "Here, eat it. Mhm… Delicious…"  
  
"No matter what the hell it wanted, the biggest problem is, we have honestly no idea where it went…" he said, starting to chew the juicy fruit.  
  
"To Dolnê, where else!?"  
  
"…Meaning the people there might be in danger." Kyro mused over the possibility.  
  
"We're not going back to Dolnê, that's for sure." Valagar frowned. "It think the best option is to proceed to Sétif, and then to Bachar."  
  
The younger man snorted, forcing his chocobo to speed up a little. "If they are still there…"  
  
"Most probably." Valagar cut him short with such authority Kyro immediately ceased to argue. "Has anyone got a better idea?"  
  
Movitriss shrugged. "Not really. Well, we'd better be careful, especially from now on…"  
  
* * *  
  
"Watch out, miss!" somebody yelled.  
  
Everything happened all of a sudden. Aeris heard the warning just in time to fall to the ground, so that a fireball barely missed her head, singeing the tips of her long hair. The flaming gust snatched the paper from her hand, sweeping it away. When a second later the spell hit a wall in the distance, ashes dancing in the air were all that was left of Valagar's note.  
  
In the blink of an eye Aeris was back on her feet. "You…!" she yelled, furious. "Look what you've done! You've destroyed it!!!"  
  
"Whatever." a tall, well-built man stood in front of her. He was a little surprised that the girl had dodged his spell, but he quickly decided it was rather a fortunate turn of events, because now he noticed how pretty she was. He knew he had to kill her to get the reward, but he decided he could as well do that later, after he'd have a little fun with her. So he pulled out a long, scary-looking knife and approached his victim with a smirk. The people standing around them immediately scattered, leaving Aeris alone with the attacker.  
  
He slowly walked up to her, very self-confident. He didn't expect a girl so small, petite and fragile to put any resistance, let alone hurt him. He stopped right in front of her and, still holding the knife in one hand, raised the other to caress the woman's cheek.  
  
"Now, take it easy, sweetheart…"  
  
Aeris had enough. With one smooth move she knocked the weapon out of the man's hand. She was a slum girl after all. She knew exactly where to hit perverts like that and the man was too much shocked to defend himself. Using her knee, she hit him hard in a place that hurt the most. The man fell to the ground, whining, moaning and cursing.  
  
"Take this, you bastard! And this!" she screamed, aiming another kick to his side.  
  
"Impressive." Sephiroth said, pulling her back by the shoulder. "Now stop before you'll hurt yourself."  
  
"Let go of me! I'll be fine! This guy has just tried to kill me and destroyed the massage Valagar left us! Before I had a chance to read it to the end!"  
  
"Oh, really?" Sephiroth asked, dangerously narrowing his eyes at the man who had just started to get up from the ground. Aeris kicks weren't really that hard or life-threatening, but they hurt, so the man was proceeding very slowly. "What note?" Sephiroth inquired, but he interrupted Aeris as soon as she opened her mouth to talk. "Wait. You'll tell me later, when there'll be less people hanging around. …Now." he turned to the would-be assassin. "Get lost or I won't be as kind as the lady."  
  
The attacker picked up his knife. And hesitated.  
  
The so-called small, fragile and defenseless woman stood only a few feet away, with her chin raised and fists clenched. Her large, green eyes sparkled with anger. Next to her stood a tall, lean man in black clothes. He carried no weapon, but something in his expression was… well… unnerving. The assassin took a careful step back. A sudden wave of uneasiness overcame him. The reward the prince had promised for bringing those guys' heads somehow lost significance.  
  
"Uh… I'll better go now…" he tried uncertainly.  
  
"Wait." the silver-haired man said calmly, but his calm voice was not very comforting.  
  
"Let him go." Aeris had already calmed down. She never intended to kill anyone on purpose, let alone in cold blood.  
  
"No, I have a better idea…" once more Sephiroth turned to the man, frowning. A small, ironical smile was playing upon his lips, a smile that almost made the other man to drop his weapon. "You still haven't compensated the lady for your rude behavior… Now, how about giving your pouch to her?"  
  
Aeris was surprised, but immediately got the point. She grinned first at Sephiroth, then at the man. Stilling from some innocent people was definitely a wrong thing, but punishing a criminal seemed like a good idea. Especially when they desperately needed money. She energetically nodded. "Yeah, you'd better listen to him! He can be really mean sometimes… Just give us your money and you'll live."  
  
The man hesitated, but Sephiroth's malicious smile quickly helped him to make a right decision. "Uh… you promise?"  
  
Aeris and Sephiroth exchanged quick glances. "Yes." the young woman spoke  
  
The man, not very eager to come closer, took out the pouch and threw it in their direction. Sephiroth caught it and weighted in his hand, tossing it into the air. The coins inside did a nice, loud clink. "Heavy." he said. "Well, I'll treat it as a fine reimburse. Leave in peace."  
  
The assassin ran back. As fast as he could. Aeris watched him go and grinned. "Nice job we did."  
  
Sephiroth shrugged. "Whatever. So…" he turned to the villagers that still stood nearby, observing the entire scene. "Where can we find the nearest inn?"  
  
"We don't want any trouble…" one of the townspeople - the innkeeper - grumbled, scratching his balding head.  
  
"Yes, indeed…" Sephiroth frowned, narrowing his eyes. "You don't want any trouble…"  
  
The innkeeper quickly thought the whole matter over. There was a threat in Sephiroth's voice and a sack in his hand. "…Follow me, mister. …And you, milady…"  
  
* * *  
  
"Now, what was in that note?" Sephiroth asked as soon as they found themselves back on the trail.  
  
Aeris quickly repeated the message. "I'm worried about them." she admitted. "Aren't you?"  
  
"Worried about the people who made me a part of this ridiculous quest in spite of my reluctance?" he smirked. "…Not really."  
  
"Sephiroth!" Aeris exclaimed, indignant.  
  
Ok., so maybe it wasn't entirely true, he admitted in his thoughts. He respected Valagar and knew his death would be very unfortunate right now, because he was the person most well-versed in the whole situation.  
  
And Movitriss… He missed her, her smiles, her intelligence and her carefree attitude. They way she used to look at him, with her eyes narrowed, almost like a hunter at his pray… It sometimes sent shivers down his spine, but he liked it. He would gladly see her alive in Sétif.  
  
…On the other hand, he wouldn't give a damn about Kyro's death.  
  
* * *  
  
In order to reach Sétif, they needed to cross the sea. After a tiring, weeklong journey they finally arrived at the coast, at a port that was called Galesbreath. It was quite big and surprisingly crowded town. Upon arrival they immediately divided their tasks: Sephiroth went to look for a ship to Sétif, while Aeris' task was to find an inn and do some shopping.  
  
Sephiroth agilely forced his way through the crowd, gathered in the docks, which served not only as a marine, but as a huge marketplace as well. He cursed in Wutaian. As usually, a big number of people irritated him, at the same time making him feel slightly uncertain. Literally every second he was being jostled by somebody or yelled at. A cacophony hard to describe filled the air. Passers-by and merchants haggled loudly in every language possible. Animals, locked in their cages, bawled. Lost children yelled and blubbered. There was even a bunch of street musicians there.  
  
Or maybe calling them musicians was not a very good idea… Sephiroth cursed once more, almost stumbling over a fallen cart. (What a pandemonium… There's nothing like civilization… Maybe that's the reason I dislike people so much?)  
  
With some effort he found the "manager's office". The so-called manager turned out to be an old, sinewy man with a face covered by uncountable scars and wrinkles. Sephiroth patiently explained the aim of his visit: he needed a place for two people on a ship to Sétif, preferably for tomorrow. The manager first looked at him with disrespect, then picked his teeth for a while, and finally asked about the money.  
  
"I don't pay agents." Sephiroth became irritated. "I suppose your job is to give free information, after all…"  
  
The captain mockingly pouted and meaningfully glanced at the door. Sephiroth sighed heavily, for a brief moment seriously considering grabbing the manager's shirt and throwing him on the street through a closed window. He composed himself. He didn't want to pay this damn smuggler, but the thought of spending the rest of the day in the port, looking for a ship, was even less appealing. "How much?" he finally snarled.  
  
"A thousand." the captain insolently grinned. Sephiroth suppressed another angry snarl and reached for the pouch. Wordlessly he laid golden coins on a table. "Heron." he heard in response. "Marina number nine. The southern docks."  
  
* * *  
  
They set sail the next day at dawn, taking advantage of the morning breeze. Heron was a small ship and, apart from Flik, the captain, the crew consisted of only four men and a ginger cat. Not many people traveled as passengers, as well. Flik said they would reach the opposite shore in nine days, of course only if the whether held.  
  
Aeris was busy as never, constantly chatting with people, playing poker with the crew in their free time - and winning, taking care of some young couple's children, feeding the birds. She was slowly returning to her old self: being energetic, kind, full of joy, self-confident and feeling light all the time. She liked everything about traveling by the sea: the fresh, crisp air, the breeze, seagulls, and the sun… She started to like Sandalya almost to the point of regarding it as her new home. This place was simply beautiful. She knew she couldn't let anybody destroy it.  
  
She used to start every day with a song. Sephiroth kept repeating how much annoying it was - Aeris liked getting up very early and therefore she was constantly waking him up. Due to the fact Heron was a small boat, they had to share a cabin. At first they were both very awkward about this, but quickly learned how to live with it.  
  
Sephiroth was less enthusiastic about the entire traveling thing, but he enjoyed himself as well. Most of the time he was dozing, taking pleasure from a light sleep that was free of any nightmares, relaxing in the warm, afternoon sun. Aeris attempted to talk to him a lot, but generally tried not to disturb him, because she felt that he needed and deserved his rest.  
  
The sea had a calming effect on everybody.  
  
* * *  
  
Sephiroth leaned slightly on the railing, gazing at the water with a thoughtful look of on his face. Aeris slowly walked up to his side. For a long moment she was silent, listening to the seagulls' cries, allowing the wind to play with her hair.  
  
"What are you thinking about…?"  
  
She was convinced that he wouldn't reply; he generally left open questions like that unanswered. To her surprise he raised his gaze. "I remember my first journey by the sea… I was… nearly thirteen." he answered indifferently, shrugging his arms.  
  
She laughed merrily, delighted that she got him to talk a little more about himself, yet nervous at the same time. "Ah, I used to learn how to tie my shoelaces back then… Tell me something more about it… Did you like the sea…?"  
  
The fact that he answered this time, surprised even Sephiroth himself. "For more than two weeks the sea was almost as calm as today… I remember the night we arrived to Junon. It was actually a very late evening and every single light shone in the Junon Bay… It was an amazing sight, perhaps not as spectacular as Midgar, but definitely much more beautiful…" he sighed. It was such a long time ago… Of course, the city looked much different back then, much better. He liked those three years he spent there, finally free of Hojo's possessiveness. It was one of the very few places he considered as a substitute of home. And childhood.  
  
Aeris remained quiet, waiting patiently. Sephiroth was deeply lost in his thoughts and his pale face betrayed no emotion. However, she could instinctively read his mood and for a brief second he almost smiled; sadly but sincerely. That had to be some good memories, she decided. She rarely saw him calm as that… or maybe it was resignation? "Are you going to tell me about it some day…?" she asked softly.  
  
He raised his head, looking at her in silence for a moment. Then he turned back to the sea once more. "Perhaps… someday." he rested his chin on his hands, leaning further. "Why do you wish to know?"  
  
She stirred, not lowering her gaze. "I just want to know you better, that's all." she explained, hoping she's not overstepping the mark with her sincerity. "You don't have to share your painful memories with me, I don't expect it. But you could tell me about everything else…"  
  
He straightened up, ready to walk away any second. Aeris moaned in her thoughts, scolding herself for haste and stupidity. "Aeris." he said coldly, but without anger. "All of my memories are…" he didn't manage to conceal hesitation in his voice. "…more or less painful."  
  
"It's not true…" she turned her eyes away, biting her lip. "You know it's not true…"  
  
He shook his head. (What do you know…?) "I don't want to talk about the past, I don't want to remember." he spoke, trying to sound possibly cold and indifferent. "It's not your concern, Aeris. Don't you have enough of your own worries? Why do you need somebody else's problems?"  
  
(You are my problem, Sephiroth…) She opened her mouth to say something, but Sephiroth interrupted her with a gesture. "No, Aeris, and it's for the better. I don't understand why are you doing this and I have an impression you don't understand it, either. I don't need your pity." he shook his head angrily.  
  
"Pity…? You're right, you don't understand anything…"  
  
Without any second thought he put a finger on her lips. She fell silent at once, as if hit by a lightning, surprised. For a moment he looked her straight in the eye, and she forgot she had to breathe, bewitched by the seriousness of his gaze. Then he turned away and hastily left her, before Aeris had managed to get over her bewilderment. He didn't look back.  
  
Feeling she's making a great mistake, Aeris let him walk away.  
  
* * *  
  
He woke up with a start. The dream was about a public execution… his own. Sephiroth was not afraid of death, let alone his own; he would rather treat is as salvation. Nevertheless… He involuntarily trembled at the memory of this nightmare and buried his face in his hands. His head was spinning. He still couldn't believe it was only a dream. It felt like a real thing…  
  
As usual. His nightmares were always so damn vivid. And he rarely remembered any other dreams… Funny… as if his own subconscious wanted to tell him something. (Was I screaming in my sleep?) He frowned, risking a quick glance at the other bed, but Aeris was breathing peacefully, still asleep. He suddenly wanted to get outside, since he had this impression of suffocating from the lack of fresh air. He got up and left the cabin, quickly putting on a pair of boots, fleetingly grabbing a white shirt, not even bothering to button it up.  
  
The night air was cool and brisk. There was absolutely nobody on board, even the captain and his helpers were long asleep, since it was around three o'clock in the morning. The moons were hidden in Sandalya's shadow, invisible, so that only stars could been seen, shining intensively against a dark, navy-blue background of the sky. Sephiroth sat down on the railing, with his legs overboard, effortlessly keeping his balance in spite of the ship's rolling. In any case, he didn't really care. He could as well fall into the sea now…  
  
As he was staring into the waves, his lip curled in self-contempt.  
  
He still remembered his own death, even if it happened almost five years ago… The mako was frightfully cold and thick as tar. So cold that it actually burned… Breathing it made you suffocate, but didn't kill you at once. Sephiroth remembered that at first he had desperately wanted to stay alive, not being able to accept the thought of being defeated, but the next minute he had already changed his mind. Every nerve in his body screamed in pain. He had only wanted to end the torture as quickly as possible, but he had soon found out that it wasn't easy to pass out, even though he had tried it very hard. It took him a lot of time and hurt like… At the mere memory he bit his lip so hard, that he felt blood on his tongue.  
  
Instinctively he lifted a hand to his mouth to wipe it away, but the cut healed very quickly. He knew it would disappear without any trace in a few moments.  
  
(Maybe I actually deserved it… but why? What choice did I have? Was it really my fault?)  
  
He closed his eyes in resignation.  
  
(I am a murderer and I will always stay a murderer, irrespective of everything… Even I can't view it in different categories… The accursed ethics, the common established norms, and the so-called moral point of view haunt me… And I can't escape it, no matter what… Jenova was right… this is so piteous…)  
  
He didn't even feel any anger, only a piercing, dominating grief. Sorrow. Depression. Frustration. He smiled bitterly, not opening his eyes. No wonder these feelings were so familiar… they had been accompanying him for almost twenty-five years.  
  
(What had I done to deserve Nibelheim? And was I able to change anything…?)  
  
One again he discovered there was no answer to that question. He could deliberate it over and over, thousands of times, and the result would always stay the same… ant yet he could not stop himself from wondering.  
  
(I went angry, that's true, and I wasn't thinking much about what I was doing. I uncritically trusted Jenova… though from the beginning I knew what she was driving at, I never questioned her plans… Earlier, as a soldier, I had never openly questioned orders, either… But inside, did I hesitate at least once, listening to Jenova's voice? Maybe… but it didn't matter at all, anyway… Back there, in Nibelheim, for a moment I was truly happy. I started believing that there was some sort of sense in everything, even in my previous suffering. That everything I'd been trough didn't happen without a reason… I felt betrayed and tricked by the humans, but at least not hopeless and alone… I knew what should be done… or so I thought, anyway. I had an impression I was just starting the real life…)  
  
He suppressed a sigh.  
  
(And now… I'm alone again. And after everything that happened it's even more difficult than it was… Now, when I think clearly… I can't, I simply cannot remain indifferent, though I would like not to care. Even if theoretically I could start my life anew, I know well that it is unfeasible… I'm not able to… The past will always hunt me…)  
  
Why……? Why me…?  
  
(Destiny? I guess I never believed in destiny. So what, irony of fate? Or maybe just a coincidence? A fact of no significance… Or are some invisible gods laughing at me right now? My life was planned long before the day I was born… even before my conception. It's also piteous… I was created of cold calculation only… scientific curiosity… human greed… Nobody gave me a choice… ever. Had I ever made a decision entirely by myself?)  
  
He slowly shook his head. No, he could not remember. All of a sudden he wanted to cry and laugh at the same time.  
  
(Why…?)  
  
He raised his head and brushed some silver strands aside from his face. Not tied up with a velvet ribbon, his hair moved freely, pulled by the wind. It was cold. Sephiroth sighed. Far above his head the stars shone with millions of lights. The sea was humming monotonously.  
  
Suddenly he heard footsteps. He didn't even need to turn around to know Aeris stood right behind him…  
  
End of Chapter 7.  
  
* * *  
  
Author's Notes: Again, not much happened this chapter, but I simply couldn't deny myself the pleasure of writing Sephiroth's thoughts - he's the main character here, remember? Actually, that piece with him dwelling on his past is a part of a story I created more than eight months ago. I guess I was less mature back then, or perhaps simply depressed, 'coz Sephiroth was crying in that fic. However, now I cut out the teary stuff, since it didn't look well in "No choice left".  
  
Quoting Brian Adams: "Everything I do, ooo, I do it for you…" ^_^ So please, I need to know whether you're still interested in this fic. No reviews, no Chapter 8. Sorry, folks, I know I'm annoying, but life is brutal, as one my history teachers used to repeat. ^_~ 


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: The song Aeris sings belongs to The Cranberries. (I own five CDs by The Cranberries, but the song I've chosen for this chapter is one of the less known ones, which means I've never actually heard the melody before… ^_^; I can only assume it's a slow one, according to the lyrics - I downloaded them from the net about a month ago. Anyway, I decided that it fits here and risked a terrible mistake of… uh, making Aeris sing an aggressive rock song. ^_^;;; ) …Back on the subject… Aeris and Sephiroth are - as always - the property of Squaresoft. Enjoy this disclaimer, because it's probably the last one… I hate making them up!

Author's Notes: I finished this chapter a few days ago, but didn't feel like posting it. Am I loosing heart for this fic? Or maybe I'm simply temporarily depressed? This part is stupid, sentimental and poorly written, and yet I was too lazy to correct it or change anything… Sorry. Next chapter will be better, though. Yeah, try deluding your readers with some false promises, that's the point… *a very insane grin*

***

"You don't give up easily, do you?" he raised his eyebrows, irritated, jumping down from the railing.

"I woke up and saw you weren't there, so after a while I went out to look for you." she said calmly, unprovoked. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Sephiroth answered firmly. "And I don't need a caretaker."

She shook her head, leaning on the rail. "Oh, quit it. You can't sleep, right? Or perhaps… you're simply afraid to sleep?" he instantly tensed. "You see?" she clasped her hands, bending over the water. "Sometimes you're being so honorable… Forgive me, if I offended you, but that's the only way I can make you stop acting sarcastic or being entirely silent." she suddenly raised her head and looked straight into his eyes, which were terrifyingly beautiful… even now, when anger shone in them. "No one has ever talked to you that way, right? No one tried to help you… I can see who you are, Sephiroth. Who you _really_ are. Beyond that cool exterior of yours."

Heavy silence fell between them. Sephiroth was so surprised with her indignity that for a moment he actually lost his voice, which was a rare thing, indeed. (How dare you speak to me like that!?) Her words were like a slap across the face.

"I don't mind your anger." Aeris said, a little frightened, and yet serene at the same time. "At least I know that my words are reaching you. That I'm not talking to a wall…" she smiled sadly. "…contrary to what you try to prove me."

"So what?" he shrugged, calming down and turning his back on her.

"You're human, Sephiroth. You react emotionally, exactly the way any human would…"

"You know nothing about me." he said quietly, with his eyebrows settled into a frown and his eyes closed. "You have no idea about what I really think of… and the way I think. These are just your own delusions. Long ago I've learned to control emotions and somehow managed to do without them. They have never brought me anything but problems. They destroyed Nibelheim…"

"It was Jenova that destroyed Nibelheim, Sephiroth…" Aeris reminded gently.

"It's not true…" his voice involuntarily trembled, too slight for the woman to notice. "Do you really think it would have happened if I hadn't wanted that…?"

"Did you…?"

"Back then?" he sighed. His large, aquamarine eyes had a distant, thoughtful and frightfully sorrowful look. "Back then… Yes… Even much. I was… very angry. I believed in every single thing I did. I had no doubts Jenova was right, I didn't hesitate even for a moment…"

(I was a fool… as always…)

Aeris took a deep breath. "And now? Do you regret it…? Please, refrain from sarcasm this time. Give me an honest answer…"

an honest answer?

(I'm not sorry for them, but for myself only…)

He was silent for a very long time.

"Yes, I regret doing it." he said. "But no, I do not regret those people." Aeris felt some invisible hand grasping her throat and she paled. Sephiroth smiled bitterly. "That's not the answer you expected, right? Well, you asked me for sincerity. You should've taken that into account…"

"Why… not?" Aeris finally spoke.

"Why do I not feel sorry for them?" he shrugged and slowly shook his read. For a short moment his eyes once more sparkled with exhaustion and sorrow. "It perplexes you, you can't understand it, right?" She nodded in silence.

(A matter of upbringing?) Sephiroth wondered briefly, brushing the silver strands aside. (War experiences, perhaps? Or maybe there's really something wrong with me if I'm not able to understand what seems so obvious to her… that every death is wrong, in spite of anything… Have I ever thought that way…?)

I don't remember

(When I was a child I was constantly told that death had sense, if only it were your enemies that you killed… I never saw anything wrong in bloodshed… Never liked it, for it was messy, yet never complained much. And when I was killing for Jenova, I had my enemies and my personal reasons, so everything made a perfect sense.Even if I now realize I was wrong, it doesn't change anything…)

(I regret killing some people I knew well… like Tseng for example. He was only eighteen years older, but I used to treat him almost like a father I never had, I admired his ingenuity, eloquence, dark sense of humor… …But the others? All the nameless faces from the crowd? Who were they for me to feel sorry about them?) He bit his lip, since something bothered him deeply. (But those people were also women and children… They couldn't defend themselves… And it's not the same as killing soldiers or those who threaten you…) He winced, his thin eyebrows stirred unnoticeably. (They were not the ones that hurt me… Which means my vengeance was foolish. And very childish. Sometimes I have an impression that every single thing I did was pointless…)

He sighed. "You'll never understand…"

Aeris smiled sadly. "But I believe it's worth trying. It's hard for you, isn't it? But the past certainly cannot be changed, in spite of anything, so I guess it's no point in letting the memories torment you." he was surprised to learn how much she actually knew about him. "You think you're alone now? Well, that's not true…" she hesitated before speaking the words that meant much to her. "You'll always have me… Let's make a deal." she looked into his eyes. "You won't give up. …For me."

He was silent.

"Did you really think I was about to commit a suicide?" he smiled bitterly and shook his head. "No, I'm determined to live, no matter what. It's the damned instinct of self-preservation… I cannot really escape it…"

"I believe everyone has a chance to live." she spoke silently.

Especially you.

"I'm neither stupid, nor naive, Sephiroth, and my words are not badly-thought-out. I feared you when we first met at the airport, because I thought you were still a dangerous man obsessed with power. Now I realize you indeed seem to be cold-hearted, but you're far from being yet another cruel murderer. I see you're a victim just like everybody else." He frowned. "Don't!" she interrupted him. "Let me finish. Now, that I see things in a different light, I'm no longer afraid of you. Perhaps I'll never understand your reasons… and I think I don't really want to understand them… I also don't think the things you did deserve praise and I wish they had never really happened, but I do not condemn you. All you can do know is try to forget and to move on, and even I have to admit it, as cruel as it may sound to the memory of those people you killed. I believe you can start everything anew…"

He said nothing, simply staring into the water.

"Do you still think I'm a fool?" she smiled bitterly. "Believing in you?"

She bit her lip. (Tell me. What do you think of me, Sephiroth?)

Wordlessly, he let go of the railing and turned around. Aeris was sure he was going to walk away, offended at her straightforwardness. But he only came up to the superstructure's wooden wall and sat down, closing his eyes. "Sing something, Aeris…" he unexpectedly asked.

"I can't sing that well…" she carefully opposed, blushing slightly. "I'd only ruin this night."

"Yes, you can." his voice was heavy, tired. He rested his elbows on his knees, bending down his head, burying it in his hands. "Please."

She turned her head away. (What should I sing…? Something merry? Sad? Serious or perhaps silly? What does he expect?) She wondered for awhile, unable to come across any good idea. She walked up to the wall as well and sat down beside Sephiroth. A minute later she closed her eyes and started to sing, at the beginning very shyly and quietly, blushing, trying not to ruin the gentle melody, and yet gradually becoming more self-confident; her firm voice enveloped in the silence of the night.

"Night-time has gone when all was still/ Moon shone the way as we climbed the hill/ When we arrived we raised our hands/ Now the dawn has come now we understand/ The sun does rise in the eastern sky/ and love soon comes watch over I/ The road was long yes we travelled far/ Through long dark nights without guiding star/ Visions of an angel came along the way/ Told us "don't be fearful for there comes a brighter day"/ This journey's been an epic/ Sometimes I've been so down/ Stranded in a lonely bar the other side of town/ Yes we've travelled day and night for many a pour mile/ Now it all makes sense as we see the morning smile…"

When Aeris finished singing, neither of them spoke for a very long time.

"You know what…?" Aeris was the first to break the silence. Anxiously, she rested her head on Sephiroth's shoulder, partially expecting him to frown at her, to stand up, and yet he did nothing to pull away. Perhaps he had missed the warmth of human touch. Or perhaps he didn't really care.

He slowly looked up. "Hm…?"

"I think it's just a matter of patience. Things will work out fine, we just need to be patient…"

(We?) Sephiroth thought, but said nothing, concealing his mild surprise. A warm cheek pressed against his shoulder, Aeris closed her eyes. The gentle rolling of the ship, the calming humming of the waves and the tiredness made her fall asleep very quickly.

Trusting like a little child, the fragile woman slept leaning on her murderer's arm.

(Now, isn't _that_ ironic…) Sephiroth sighed. He carefully rested his head on hers, cautious not to awake her. (I wish I could stay like this forever… away from the troubles of the world… Lost in the sea… But I know all happy moments will eventually come to an end…)

A seagull's cry tore the air. He looked up. The inevitable dawn was approaching.

***

__

"Look, mommy, it's a rose!"

Elmyra bent over her eleven-year-old daughter. "It's the prettiest rose I've ever seen…"

"Look! I can braid my hair with it and pretend I'm a princess!"

The woman smiled at her. "Maybe you won't have to pretend at all, Aeris… my little princess…"

"And then one day my noble prince will arrive on a golden chocobo…" the girl went on, lost in her blissful fantasy.

"And you'll fall in love with him, and you'll be both very happy together." Elmyra finished.

Aeris expression turned into a childish, innocent frown. "But how would I know I'm in love…?"

"You'll simply know, when the time comes…" Elmyra laughed quietly. "Believe me, you will…"

***

"This place is huge!" Aeris said, looking round the broad streets of Sétif, as she tried to avoid being trampled by the crowd. "How are we supposed we find them _here_? Checking every inn? I bet there are dozens of them in this city!" Not paying much attention to her words, Sephiroth just hurried down the street with an irritated look on his face. Although Aeris knew it was not her that he was being annoyed with, but the weather, she still wished he could sometimes act differently. Not only was this place crowded, it was also incredibly hot. Aeris sighed, but before she could follow her moody companion, an unfamiliar man had suddenly grabbed the hem of her dress.

"Do you want me to look into your future, miss?"

"Aaah…" Aeris, startled, quickly pulled away. "…No. Rather not. Thanks."

She turned around to see Sephiroth was already gone.

"No, not again!" she cursed under her breath. (Don't leave me alone!)

"Excuse me…"

"Look, I've already told you I don't want to…" she started to raise her voice, but immediately stopped as soon as she realized that this time a different person stands behind her - a boy not older than fifteen years old.

"Yes?" she said impatiently, still looking round for Sephiroth. To her immeasurable relief, he suddenly emerged from around the corner, obviously having searched for her as well. She wanted to say something, but the boy was faster.

"By any chance…" he began, bowing to them. "Are you the people I'm looking for? Miss Gainsborough? Mr. van Thyssen?"

Being called by Hojo's surname for the first time in his life made Sephiroth wince and almost grab the boy's throat. "Who the hell are you?"

The boy misunderstood Sephiroth's anger and took a very rapid step forward. "I-I am Keled, a messenger… Lord Ongi sent me to find you by the request of a man called Valagar, and told me you were his friends. Please, follow…"

"Since when we're friends with some what's-his-name lord?" Aeris asked, putting a hand on her hip.

Damn, she's learning quickly, Sephiroth thought. (I guess I'm the teacher…)

"Lord Ongi will explain you everything." the frightened, and yet self-assured boy answered. "Please, just follow me to his house…"

***

"Sétif is beyond Haghia's influence. It proclaimed independence three years ago. Back then, Evorinth decided not to take any action, because his kingdom was involved in a dangerous, potentially catastrophic conflict with Rotham, a fairly large country to the south. Now, that the conflict with Rotham is over, I fear he may be considering some sort of vengeance upon us, in order to regain the lost territory. I was told he had started gathering an army. …Anyway, we might increase our chances of winning this war by helping you. Every enemy of Evorinth is a friend of mine."

(Enemy of Evorinth…? I don't care about him at all! I won't meddle into some local conflict…) Sephiroth frowned, not even bothering to hide his aversion.

The duke smiled. "Ah, I can see you're not very eager to help us…"

"We have much bigger problems to worry about…" Aeris spoke.

"What sort of problems?" Ongi became interested.

"Aeris." Sephiroth frowned, before the young woman had a chance to say anything about the Räelans or about Evorinth having other reasons to gather an army apart from punishing Sétif.

"Sorry." she blushed, plunging her eyes to the ground.

"I see." the lord laughed. "If it's a secret, so be it." Aeris frowned, feeling a little suspicious about the prince waving the matter aside just like that. "Don't worry. I'm not the type of person Evorinth is. I won't betray my guests… Send paid assassins or add any poison to their food. Relax."

"Oh, that's very kind of you." Sephiroth said, deadly serious. However, Aeris already knew him well enough to realize he was once again being sarcastic, but fortunately the other man didn't catch the mockery in those words.

"I'll see you on supper. The three of your friends will most probably join us later that evening, as soon as they'll finish their business in the city." the lord said and left the room.

"I wonder what Valagar promised him…?" Sephiroth said, leaning comfortably on a sofa just after the door closed.

"What do you mean?" Aeris tilted her head to the side, trying to comb through her tangled hair with her fingers only.

He sighed. "There's some deeper reason beyond that politeness. Do you think he would act disinterestedly just like that?"

"I _do_ believe in people, you know…" she grinned at him.

He didn't seem to have heard her last comment. "…He most probably promised our help in this pathetic little war between Haghia and Sétif. It's so easy to foresee…"

"What!?" she frowned.

"Didn't you notice…? Valagar's using literally everybody."

They were both silent for a few seconds.

"Whatever." Aeris finally spoke, shrugging her arms. "I think I'm gonna take a quick bath now… Do you imagine how much salt do I have in my hair?"

***

Allowing herself a gentle sigh of relief, she threw her head backwards, leaning it on the tub's wooden edge. The timber was dark with moisture.Aeris' hair was equally drenched with the humid air, therefore being wet and heavy. The oils that had been poured into the water gave off an intense aroma of vanilla. Aeris felt very sleepy, but she finally forced herself to step out of the tub, naked and soaking with water. She grabbed a white, coarse cloth that lay on the floor and wrapped it tightly around her body, trembling a little, since it was cold in the stonewalled basement. She started murmuring under her breath.

"Now, where did I left my dress…? Upstairs?"

She turned around to check the other corner of the basement. And she instantly froze in panic, almost dropping the cloth.

"No…" her lips whispered. "It can't be… It can't be…"

Jenova

(She's dead! Dead!!!)

…But, of course, it wasn't her. The creature looked slightly different, slightly less repulsive and very much alive. It stood two meters tall, on a pair of massive legs. Its reddish body glistened in the candlelight, some veins being visible from under the skin. Aeris gasped in shock. It was incredible, the way it looked at her, with those piercing violet eyes. She wanted to pull back, to scream, but the tension was just too much for her to stand. She did what any normal woman would do in such situation.

With her eyes still wide, she fainted.

***

Standing alone in the middle of the dinning room, Sephiroth was unaware of all the things going on in the basement, impatiently waiting for Valagar to return. (What's taking them so long…?) He casually walked up to the table, absently lighting a candle with a mere snap of his fingers. And he paused. He could feel somebody behind him. No, it wasn't a servant, for servants usually don't creep up on you from the behind or lurk in the shadows. (Another assassin?) Years of military training made him spun around even before he could logically think up his next move.

At first he thought it was a monster

Then, a second later, the realization struck him. And his face went white as snow, lips deadly pale, as his eyebrows raised in recognition. Though he could normally control adrenaline, his heartbeat now uncontrollably quickened and his calm blue eyes turned bright green, narrowing into tiny slits.

Because it was no monster, only something much worse.

He gasped, but he did not act on impulse, driven by a blind rage or sense of danger. He waited, slightly leaned forward, with his hand frozen near to his hip, as if ready to summon a weapon. Ever so slowly he was getting over his shock. Fear. And fascination. He perfectly realized that the being in front of him was intelligent. He way it looked at him sent shivers down his spine.

"Who are you!?" Sephiroth spat, though he already knew the answer. "Where do you come from!?"

And the alien answered. The mental blow was so powerful, that it almost made Sephiroth cry out. No, it was not painful… just… so overwhelming. It was much more like images, like feelings being imprinted into his brain… The entire message was based on emotions rather than words. Jenova had sometimes spoken with him that way, too. But spending more than two thousand years on the Planet had made her learn how to articulate words and she had used this ability quite often, in order for him to better understand her wishes and desires.

The alien either didn't know how to speak, or didn't really bother to try. But the message was obvious enough and Sephiroth understood.

__

Who are you?

No hostility. Just curiosity.

"It hurts. Stop." Sephiroth said, sinking to his knees. By this time he perfectly realized it was not his words the creature understood, but his thoughts.

The alien took a step forward, and despite its size it moved with a catlike grace of a dancer. Sephiroth's instincts screamed for him to back up, to summon his sword, to cast a spell, to do anything. However, his cold, reasonable mind flatly told him to stay in place. (If it wanted me dead, it would just sneak upon me faster or attack me with a spell from the corridor. I would either be dead or fighting it right now.)

A thin, sticky hand touched his chin, raising it up.

For the first time he got a chance to look straight into the alien's eyes. They were empty. Devoid of any emotion. But the emotion was there and he knew it. It was so… overpowering.

__

Not human, the voice in his head said. _Interesting._

"What are you doing here?" Sephiroth repeated in a harsh whisper, narrowing his own, equally inhuman eyes at the creature.

__

Obvious. This place will be ours. We need it.

"Need it? For what?"

__

Are you one of us?

The creature leaned closer. Sephiroth held his breath, unable to move, unable to do anything.

__

He won't hurt me, he suddenly realized.

__

No. I won't. Human?

It was as if something deep awakened inside him. Something that had been always there, but had remained buried under the smooth surface of humanity. Something familiar. Jenova never forced that kind of reaction out of him.

He felt like falling.

__

Who are you?, the alien repeated. _Not human._

A broken dish fell to the floor as a young female servant started to scream. The alien, alarmed by the noise, immediately rushed in her direction. Sephiroth caught a glimpse of emotions that passed through the creature's head. He was determined to kill.

"No!" Sephiroth screamed, instantly jumping to his feet. "Don't hurt her!"

End of Chapter 8

***

Author's Notes: Uuuh, now this chapter _was_ awful, interesting, maybe, but terribly designed. Now where did I put that rope…? Anyway…! You don't seriously expect the poor servant girl to live, do you…? Or Aeris to stay in one piece, for that matter? What about Valagar's standpoint? Well, in case you overlooked it - he's been actually defending the Räelans from the beginning… Furthermore… is Movitriss going to come back and flirt with Sephy? Most importantly - will I ever update this story!?

So many unanswered questions… that's just the way life is. As usually, I'm counting on your feedback. Thanks for your support so far, remember, I love you all!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: No disclaimer this time. I told you!

…Oh no! The Squaresoft representatives are coming! Aaah! I didn't mean to! I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to skip the discl-

__

Bang!

Author's Notes: Mwahahaha, it's me again! And you thought you could escape this worthless fic just like that? No, the image of Sephy speaking in grammatically incorrect sentences will haunt you forever in your dreams! Mwahahaha!!! Mwaha- Err… Whatever. Ah, besides, you're gonna hate me for this chapter, that's for sure, but I decided to follow the script no matter what.

…Script? What script!? Girl, you have no script! You just have a few loose scenes in your mind, the ending included, and you try to make a fic out of it!

(Oh, shut up! Not everybody has to know about it!)

…So flame me if you wish, curse the lack of 'pure action' in this story, pull your hair out in despair, but please, give me a sign you were here to read this chapter and leave a review, any of you!

Info: the _large pieces of text written in italics_ are flashbacks, contrary to the _single sentences _that are just telepathic stuff.

***

__

He wearily stood up, a white shirt tied around his hips flapping in the wind. Narrowing his pupils into slits, he looked up, straight at the sun. It was definitely smaller than in should be.

again

He looked round very carefully, taking in his surroundings - it was quite unnecessary, for he had learned them almost by heart by now. The landscape, which reminded him of pictures from Gongaga, was remarkably beautiful. A waterfall roared somewhere in the distance, hidden from view by a lush, tropical jungle. Right now he stood on an open, sun-burnt plain that was ranging the forest. He swept his eyes over some hills that could be seen on the horizon.

She used to come to him right here.

She. The mysterious woman with no real face and no real voice. She claimed she was his mother and kept promising him that he would meet her one day. He wasn't sure whether he liked her or not, since there was this distinct coldness in her words. Moreover, all the time he was convinced that it was only a dream, and being thirteen years old, Sephiroth knew better than to believe his fantasies. The point was, the dream was always so real…

She didn't appear this time, however, which made him feel disappointed and impatient. He had never tried leaving this place before, but he decided he could go and check the other side of the hill. He started walking straight ahead. High grass brushed his legs, leaving visible green stains upon the blue fabric of his jeans. His silver hair whirled in the wind that eased a little the searing heat that poured down from the sky.

(Where am I?)

He kept moving until he reached the top of the hill. And there he stopped, because it was impossible to go any farther, except from turning back. It looked precisely like the edge of the world, for there was nothing left in front of him, but a breathtakingly beautiful space void set with millions of stars. He sat down on the edge of a cliff, gazing at the magnificent view, trying to name any constellations and discovering a few he knew. He noticed a bigger shape to the left, an object surrounded with a gentle, blue glow, bathed in the radiance of the stars. He drew his knees to his chin, as his eyes grew wider. He knew_ it was _thePlanet_. His home. Why was it suddenly so far away?_

(It's not happening for real, is it?)

Oh, but it is…

__

It was her_. He instantly reckognized the voice and didn't even bother to look round or stand up. He only sighed, lowering his gaze. "Why do you keep bringing me here?"_

Don't you like it?

__

He slowly shook his head. "It's not that. Yes, I like it, but…"

"Shhh. I think you're still too young to understand. But I'll show you some day what the real purpose of this dream is…"

He frowned. "Why won't you tell me now?"

In a flash, gray clouds appeared on the perfect sky, changing the atmosphere into wet and heavy. The air was thick with smoke and dense with electricity, as if a storm was brewing.Reopening his eyes, he found himself on the top of the ShinRa building, high above the metropolis of Midgar. There was something magical in this view, something captivating. The wind played with his hair, pulled at the tails of his coat, bringing back memories of those many days in the past when he stood just like that, on the edge of the roof, looking at the city, one step from falling. Yes, it gave him the great feeling of power, and he enjoyed it.

(A suitable point of view…)

From the place he was standing the humans were almost invisible, even in spite of his improved eyes. Like ants, he thought. (Why should I care about the ants if I'm not one of them? No one can stop me now.) He smirked at the thought of Shinra lying dead in his office only a few meters below.

Her tentacles wrapped him from the behind, enveloping him in a tight and warm embrace. He felt her upper body resting on his shoulder, her soft, delicate 'fingers' touching his own.

"Look." she whispered into his ear. "It's your heritage…"

***

She tiptoed to his bed as quietly as possible and sighed, leaning over him. He was still asleep. With his eyes closed tightly and curled up into a ball, he resembled a child. Movitriss carefully sat down on the bed's edge.

He was still wearing those black, leather mittens. She frowned in surprise, as she realized she had never actually seen him without them. She looked closely. He had thin, delicate fingers and white, slender palms. No scars. She heard some stories about his past and she couldn't believe that with those hands he was able to lift more than two hundred kilograms. And that with those hands… he had killed thousands of people.

She sighed again. When he was asleep, he looked like a porcelain doll, like an angel. It was almost impossible for anybody to look that beautiful. Involuntarily, she bit her lip, feeling a slight constriction in her stomach, something she couldn't suppress. She knew she should immediately stop thinking about him like that, in these categories. And yet she couldn't.

Silver hair was scattered everywhere across the pillow, covering most of his face. Movitriss carefully brushed a few soft strands aside. He had long, darkgray eyelashes. With some hesitationshe touched his cheek, all the time wondering whether she's not going too far. (What if he wakes up…? How am I going to explain this to him?). She clasped her hands in her lap, watching the man silently. Then she reached for a blanket and covered him with it. Suddenly Sephiroth moaned in his sleep and stirred nervously. His thin eyebrows moved. (A nightmare?) Movitriss tensed as well and touched his forehead. It was as cold as ice.

(What are you dreaming of, Sephiroth…?)

The question, not even vocalized, was of course left without an answer. Sephiroth moaned again, his hand moved slightly. He went paler - if it was imaginable at all - and groaned something incoherently. Movitriss slipped onto the floor, taking one of the man's hands into her own. Closed her eyes, she started to whisper, casting a spell. Sephiroth gradually became calm, his breath slowed down. Tired, Movitriss rested her head on the blanket. She didn't even notice the moment of falling asleep.

***

__

(I'm hearing voices, am I not? Is it… schizophrenia…?)

He sank to his knees, clutching his head, as a sob started to rise in his throat.

(I need to get up… Get up! That's just pathetic! The ship to Wutai is leaving in an hour… I need to change, wash my face, finish the paperwork… Damn, where did I put those cigarettes… I need to calm down… Compose myself…)

His hands trembled slightly when he was lighting a thin, elegant cigarette, still kneeling on the tiled floor. Staggering, he got up, clutching the basin's edge. His reflection in a mirror made him wince. Tangled, silver hair, which was cut unevenly according to the latest fashion. Glowing eyes… A face so white it could as well belong to a vampire. A face that was far too serious for a seventeen-year-old boy. Without finishing it, he tossed the cigarette into the basin, and suddenly his reflection started to blur before his very eyes. A soft, female voice spoke inside his head.

Why do you think it's a dream?

__

"Stop it!" he yelled loudly. "You're not real!" The mirror crashed into million of tiny pieces. A small shard of glass dug into his skin and red blood stained the marble sink. "You're not real…" he whispered, closing his eyes in exhaustion, leaning heavily against a wall and for the second time dropping onto his knees.

(Maybe it's just the stress, resulting from such a responsible job… Or the excitement of leaving Migdar once more… But… it shouldn't be happening! And… it's not the first time I hear her, right?)

***

Waking up, he instantly knew something was wrong. The first thing he noticed was Movitriss' red hair scattered across the bed's edge, only centimeters away from his own face. He sat up in a twinkle of an eye. Being violently roused from her dream, Movitriss' lifted her head as well, very rapidly, at first without realizing what was happening. For a moment she thought she was still asleep. A pair of narrowed eyes was fixed questioningly at her. Sephiroth's puzzled expression was so funny, that most probably she would have burst out laughing under some different circumstances. Now she only gasped, suddenly remembering the previous night.

(Oh, shit! How could I fall asleep just like that!)

For a few moments he simply stared at her, blinking in surprise, his gloved hand still in her warm grasp. He was neither ignorant, nor inexperienced with woman, and slowly he was beginning to understand. Very gently, not wanting to embarrass her further, he pulled away from the touch.

"What were you doing… like this?" he asked.

However, she was not the kind of woman to blush easily. She equally gazed at him, her golden eyes warm and lips curled up into a delicate smile. "Sorry for scaring you…" she answered. "Let's say… I couldn't stop myself."

He winced at such straightforwardness, but then again, straightforwardness was something he generally admired. "I see…" he answered, mischievously narrowing his eyes; eyes that sparkled with amusement.

His smile was so gorgeous it almost made her melt. Spending a couple of weeks without him made her realize how much she actually missed and needed him. She always used to dismiss the so-called 'love at first sight' as a fairy tale. So why was her heart beating faster now, as it usually did when he was near? (I barely even know him…) She got up, throwing him a longing glance, almost fluttering her long eyelashes and silently scolding herself for such an obvious behavior.

"I'll make you some breakfast. Get dressed and I'll be back in a second."

"Wait." he suddenly frowned, calling to remembrance his encounter with the Räelan. "What happened…? The… the alien!" he blurted. "What happened!?"

***

"You mean, it disappeared, just like that…?" Aeris asked, absently playing with her silver necklace.

Kyro nodded. "Most probably, since we found you in the basement alone and unhurt. …And the other one, the one who attempted to attack the girl… well, as soon as she came round, she told us that 'this man with silver hair' started to yell something and 'the monster' stopped. And then it escaped through a window, leaving shattered glass everywhere and unconscious Sephiroth on the floor."

Aeris bit her lip. "I'm worried about him…" she whispered.

(Why didn't they tell me the truth about the Räelans before? I wonder if Sephiroth knew… No, of course not… Or maybe… Perhaps he knew and used the journey to Sandalya as a chance to meet them…? Was his connection with Jenova _that_ deep? Is he going to… loose his mind again?)

How could _anybody_ be worried about that murderer, Kyro had no idea, so he simply snorted. Aeris looked up, sending him a confused glance. "What?" the blonde shrugged. "You'd better be concerned about yourself, as something unpleasant might happen to you in the future. I still believe he's one of the aliens and that he'd never change. I almost expect him to take up his previous path. People are likely to repeat their biggest mistakes… ups, sorry. I forgot that he's not even human…"

"_Your_ biggest mistake would be to repeat these words in my presence, ever!" angry Movitriss stormed into the room, followed by Valagar and Ongi.

Kyro rolled his eyes at her, pulling a face as soon as she turned away. Aeris said nothing, utterly lost in her worries and therefore unable notice the emotion in Movitriss' voice.

"I don't care about it!" Ongi was saying, furious.

"But you have to understand, taking action now might result…" Valagar cut the air with the back of his hand.

"There are dangerous!"

"Nobody has died."

"Yet!"

"We cannot understand them, that's all!"

"They're like a disease…" Kyro muttered, too quiet for anybody to hear, apart from Aeris.

"And we'll _never_ understand them! They're different! Contrary to what you suggest, they cannot coexist with the humans!"

***

Unnoticed, Sephiroth stood in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe and listening to the argument with his fists clenched. And when he decided he had just heard enough, he rushed into the room, breaking the conversation. He walked up straight to Valagar, resisting the urge to slap the man across the cheek.

"How could you!?" he yelled at him instead. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Would you have come with us, then?"

Sephiroth fell silent. Reasoning with this man was pointless.

(I can't blame him for being even more selfish than I am… He's convinced that everything he does is right… using the people he needs, omitting to mention the truth… He never lied to me, did he? And yet the problem is, as I've already learned, that the most dangerous of all falsehoods is a slightly distorted truth…)

"Do you even realize how do I feel right now?" Sephiroth finally said, lowering his head.

"What, are you afraid of them…?" Kyro asked mockingly "Afraid of the aliens? Because looking at yourself you know what they are really capable of?"

"Shut up, kid!" Sephiroth hissed. "Before I'll show you what an alien is capable of…"

"Who are you calling a kid, you-" Kyro started and was interrupted with Valagar's irritated voice.

"Stop it, both of you!"

…But it was too late. Sephiroth was tired of such accusations, lies, masked hostility and slanders mixed with false assumptions. It was the tension of the previous weeks, connected with his last experiences and repeating nightmares, that made him spring at the younger man without hesitation, even though he was fully aware that Kyro had little to do with the true reason behind his anger… He was frustrated with himself, mostly.

"You asked for it!" he spat in Kyro's direction, realizing he was overreacting. He just needed to vent his anger on somebody, which meant he was fighting to kill… and he knew it.

Kyro had just waited for such an occasion, determined to get rid of the dangerous man as soon as possible. In a blink of an eye he was on his feet, with his sword drawn. "See?" he shouted in Aeris' direction, flying at Sephiroth's throat. "I told you!"

Sephiroth clenched his teeth, dodging the first blow and uttering a curse, as Kyro's blade nearly cut his throat. With one quick flick of his wrist, the younger warrior attempted to slash Sephiroth on the leg, failing miserably, and yet immediately aiming a blow at his face with his left hand, effortlessly keeping his balance. Sephiroth had to jump out of the way, not managing to grab the opponent's wrist.

"Kyro!" Movitriss yelled furiously and spun around. Valagar shook his head at her. It was obvious he won't interfere with the fight. Ongi and Aeris stood to the side - the duke perplexed and disgusted, and the woman visibly scared. Movitriss clasped her hands, closing her eyes, and started to chant a silence spell.

Kyro swung his sword in the air, aiming at the opponent's head and once more missing. With a truly inhuman reflex, Sephiroth kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying across the room. However, Kyro was equally fast. He managed to land on his feet, swiftly recovering his poise.

"Silence!" Movitriss shouted, throwing her twinkling fingers into the air. The spell that Kyro was about to cast broke with a hiss, spilling into hundreds of white sparks.

The two warriors stood facing each other, both furious, both not even tired, and yet breathing quite heavily.

"So what?" Kyro narrowed his brown eyes. "Are you going to kill me in cold blood?"

It was supposed to provoke him, and Sephiroth knew it, as well as make Kyro seem an innocent victim of his anger. He looked round the room, noticing Movitriss concern, Aeris fright, Ongi's distaste and Valagar's disapproval. He slowly unclenched his fists and his eyes lost the furious, green glow. "I have enough of everybody's lies!" he hissed and burst out of the room.

***

Sephiroth walked up the low, stone wall that was surrounding the park and looked down. A peaceful, almost deserted alley run a few meters below. All the shops were closed. It was early afternoon, time for a siesta, and not many people were on the streets, because of the heat. In an attempt to calm down, he had been wandering through the luxurious part of the city for more than two hours, crossing elegant gardens, until he reached the edge of this park, unsure what so do next. He didn't feel like returning to the palace right now, not yet.

__

"Angry?"

He momentarily tensed, clenching his hands into fists so hard that it hurt. Managing to stay still, he slowly turned around. Yes, his assumptions were correct - there was a male Räelan standing only a few meters behind him. He must have emerged from the bushes only a second ago. It was nearly impossible for a creature so big to move so stealthy. Sephiroth frowned. (Why I didn't notice his presence before?)

For a moment they only stared at each other. The man was tall - according to human standards - but the alien was even taller, which made Sephiroth feel slightly irritated and a little uncomfortable. He nearly gasped, when a second later the Räelan sat down. No, he wasn't surprised at all that the alien had read and interpreted his thoughts, but with the fact that he had complied with those unspoken wishes. Moreover, the creature showed absolutely no hostility, which really puzzled him.

"What are you doing here?" Sephiroth hissed. Being used to vocalize his thoughts, he didn't want the conversation to run in his mind only.

__

"I came to talk."

A direct response. Sephiroth winced. "Talk…? What about?"

__

"Why don't you seat down as well?" it was a friendly invitation.

Sephiroth looked round very quickly. They were surrounded by bushes and the wall separated them from the street below. A few passers-by didn't notice anything so far; besides, they would have to crane their necks to see anything. The other part of the garden was visibly deserted.

"They'll kill you if they see you here…" Sephiroth hesitated, narrowing his eyes. "I'm not even sure whether won't kill you myself…"

__

"Why…?" the alien was bewildered, almost shocked. "_I'm one of your kind."_

"No." Sephiroth angrily spoke. "You're not."

The alien was truly puzzled. _"You think you're a human? You make look like one, have this pitiful, slim and small body, but you're not. Besides, why would you lower yourself to such puny creatures?"_

Sephiroth bit his lower lip.

(Yes, indeed, why…? I've never actually thought of it, since I woke up in the Promised Land… Where do I belong…? Why do I constantly keep repeating myself I'm human? …As if to assure myself it's not a lie… But… blood or abilities are not all that counts. No matter how… unnatural my have youth might have been, I was still brought up in the presence of humans, absorbing human principles of behavior, human style of thinking, human cannons of beauty…)

__

"You could escape it if you only tried…"

Sephiroth shook his head. "Never mind. Why are you here?"

__

"The humans. What will they do?"

"You can't really speak with them, right?" Sephiroth narrowed his blue eyes at the creature.

__

"Yes. You're the only one who will understand. We can speak in their minds, but they think too slowly to comprehend."

"But even when I think I use words just like any other human does…"

__

"You are different. You think differently. Much faster, fast enough for the two of us to have this conversation. Your emotions are much stronger and reactions quicker."

"So what? Look. I don't really wish to talk about it. And I don't want to have anything to do with your race… Leave this place."

__

"But you feel the connection, don't you…"

yes

"Leave this place." Sephiroth repeated in annoyance, hating the fact that the alien knew the answer, even if it hadn't been spoken aloud.

__

"Don't be angry. You know it's mutual. I can't deceive you as well."

"I'm not sure…" he could tell that the Räelan was sad because of his distrust.

__

"Why do you want us to leave this place? We wish to settle here."

"It's not deserted."

__

"Animals."

Sephiroth frowned. "You regard all humans as animals…? Why? Just because you think you are… superior?"

__

"Isn't it obvious? Besides, we really are_ better and you know it. Deny."_

He looked away, lowering his head. "Do you really think that gives them less right to live?"

a hypocrite

(Am I being a hypocrite? Cynic? Because a murderer who's saying such things… there's something wrong with that… …Or have I really changed that much…?)

He sensed the alien's mild surprise. _"You're concerned about them?"_

Sephiroth hesitated before uttering his response. "No. But I think your standpoint may be wrong, after all."

__

"You're stubborn. We really need this place for us. Our homeland is dying. Why-"

"Sephiroth!" a worried, female voice echoed through the garden. "Where are you!?"

The Räelan got up; his movement was quick, almost impossible to notice.

"Aeris…" Sephiroth whispered and suddenly his expression became threatening, as he turned back to the alien. "Stay away from the humans or the Cetra."

__

"Tomorrow I'll be back." the alien said. _"I need to speak with them."_

"What makes you sure I'll help you…?" the man dangerously lowered his voice.

"Sephiroth!"

__

"We'll force them into respecting our laws. Even if this means a war."

"Wha-" he started, but the Räelan had already disappeared in the bushes. Sephiroth sighed and sat on the low wall. Aeris' voice was becoming fainter with every second.

***

What makes you human? Strong emotions such as love or hatred?

I don't really know…

But you're still seeking for an answer.

I just want to… live. And forget, consigning everything to oblivion. Why am I tormenting myself like that? My questions are of no significance…

These are moral questions, therefore the most important ones…

I don't believe in the value of life anymore. I've already seen too much destruction around me…

Would you like to see the people you love die?

Love? What is love? Just chemical reactions in your body…

Would you really like to see the entire world suffer?

No, but I won't do anything to stop the war…

Unless it concerns you personally?

Yes.

You're such an egoist.

Certainly, but not the only one… I envy those ignorant fools. They never look for the deeper reasons, taking live for plain and simple. I wish I could live just like that, without trying to understand the universe at my every step. Maybe I would be happy then… Sensitiveness and intelligence are like a curse. I know I'll never receive my answers in spite of seeking them so badly.

So why do you even bother?

End of Chapter 9

***

Author's Notes: Geez, this chapter was stranger than the previous one… All those pseudo-philosophical insertions… instead of making Sephy beat the nasty aliens to a pulp… Ah, but who said they were nasty?

Um… You said so…

(What!? You must have been imagining things…)

Anybody still reading this… uh, piece of work? Leave a review! Flame me, praise me or tell me to stop writing right now… anything! Remember, only sufficient number of reviews will make me create the next part. Thanks for everything you've done so far! Warm hugs for everybody!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Guess what: Squaresoft still owns Sephiroth and Aeris, nothing has changed for the past month! Unbelievable, isn't it? (A little bit of sarcasm makes my life brighter…)

Author's Notes: I'm terribly sorry for making you wait so long for Chapter 10, but my duties at school effectively kept me from continuing this fic. However, I'm back and - hopefully - I won't disappear again. Anybody still remembers _"No choice left"_?

Thanks for all your reviews so far! Have fun reading this chapter!

***

A poorly visible rainbow started to appear on the sky as Sephiroth was sitting on the edge of an old well, situated in the middle of a backyard that was surrounded by a high wall made of roughly cut stones.

At least it's not raining anymore, he thought absently.

A short, passing, and yet violent thunderstorm descended upon Sétif last night, but now it was only a memory. Mists were starting to rise. The air, very hot and humid, smelled of moisture, spruce and jasmine. Somewhere in the distance, the bells started to ring, tirelessly announcing the world that it was already ten o'clock in the morning.

Sephiroth sighed. Eating a tart green apple, he was carelessly looking round, with a sign of boredom written all over his face. However, his perfect self-composure was deceitful and had nothing to do with his true feelings. A familiar nervousness was raising inside his chest and it made him almost sick, feeling that way. Nevertheless, he managed to keep his expression calm, while he was slowly chewing his apple. He was alone. Waiting.

He didn't have to wait long, though. The expected visitor appeared as quickly and unnoticeably as ever. When Sephiroth looked up he was just squatting on the high wall, looking down at him with those purple, intelligent eyes that were able to see much more than they should.

Sephiroth was slightly unnerved with the Räelans' ability to move so stealthy, but he didn't let it show. He slowly finished the sour apple and tossed the core at the mossy wall. Then he stood up and brushed the nonexistent speck of dust from his black pants. The alien waited calmly, without betraying and hints of impatience, still crouching, with his head gently tilted to the side and his eyes narrowed, watching Sephiroth with a concealed curiosity…

of a predator

He brushed his uneasiness aside, as well as a few strands of silvery-white hair, and turned to the alien, cold and composed as ever.

__

"Aren't you coming?" he asked without using his lips.

With an incredible speed the Räelan leaped of the wall, and rushed towards the ground, landing on his feet. Sephiroth watched him in silence. Irrespective of how much alien blood there was in his veins, he had been brought up on the basis of human standards of beauty, so he could only find the creature disgusting. Fascinating, perhaps, but revolting, nonetheless.

__

"Are they aware of my visit?" the alien asked, not moving from the place he had landed, as if waiting for Sephiroth to invite him to come any closer.

__

"Yes." the man answered slowly, clearly hesitating. No matter how much it annoyed him, he knew that trying to hide his feelings from the alien was pointless, so he didn't even bother to conceal his distrust. _"Do you imagine how this meeting would look like?"_

The alien was silent for a while, as if reconsidering his strategy. _"Tell them what needs to be told." _he asked. It sounded rather like an order than a plea.

__

"It would make me appear siding with you." Sephiroth frowned briefly. The idea of becoming the Räelans' spokesman didn't surprise him at all - he was clever enough to expect it - but he was loathe to become one.

__

"Don't you?" the emotion contained in this telepathic message was the equivalent of a wink. _"You feel somehow… obliged to help me, don't you? Am I correct?"_

"Stop reading my thoughts when I'm not paying attention and be quiet, or I won't help you at all." he turned around and started to walk in the building's direction, gesturing at the Räelan to follow. _"I just want to get it over with. You know it's quite an unpleasant situation for everyone." _the alien snorted in response. _"What's so funny?"_ Sephiroth smiled maliciously, though not with his lips. _"You're alone and outnumbered. One false move and they'll kill you."_

"I'm not that easy to kill, child."

Sephiroth winced and scowled, this time also physically. "Child!?"

The mixture of memories and emotions that crossed Sephiroth's head at once ostensibly perplexed the alien. _"What's wrong?"_ he asked in concern.

"Don't call me that." the man gave him a dirty look.

__

"Why? I didn't mean to offend you, but you're simply much younger than I am, still a child, according to the standards of our race. What's wrong with calling you-"

"Don't!" Sephiroth interrupted him. _"It just… doesn't sound right…"_

"Jenova? Who's Jenova?" the Räelan became interested.

Sephiroth stopped dead in his tracks and abruptly turned to the alien. With some effort he resisted the urge to shout the words loud. _"I told you not to read my mind!"_

***

When they entered the crowded chamber, silence welcomed them. It was plainly visible that everyone felt uneasy in the alien's presence. Perhaps due to the fact that the creature was two meters tall and therefore taller than any human being, or perhaps due to its repulsive looks.

Valagar's face was blank, devoid of any emotion, Kyro, however, didn't bother to mask his aversion. Aeris was silent. Being easily the most frightened person in the room, due to her past experiences with Jenova, she managed to stay composed. Other people were visibly afraid and sickly interested at the same time, apprehensive about meeting the beast. Sephiroth could see how they were craning their necks to see the 'monster' better. To his own surprise it made him feel angry as well.

"I don't like the way that this beast is looking at me." Ongi whispered to a man who stood next to him.

__

"Why are they so afraid and hateful?" the alien asked, appearing really surprised.

Sephiroth's answer was painfully sarcastic. _"Make a guess."_

The alien walked up to the throne, coming to a halt only a few meters in front of it. Sephiroth stopped there as well and then backed a little, not particularly thrilled with the thought of being in the center of attention. No, he wasn't exceptionally shy, but right now he didn't like the position he found himself in. Everyone was staring at the alien in open-mouthed wonder.

"What do you want?" Ongi asked, gripping the arm of his throne so hard that his knuckles became white. Try as he might, he couldn't remain indifferent to the fact that a large, deadly dangerous beast stood only a few meters away. Sephiroth frowned.

"He won't kill you." he spoke in a low voice.

"Let us hope so." one of the noblemen said. "Please, speak."

Sephiroth took a deep breath, wondering how much time he had left, before everyone would start to yell in protest. "They wish to settle here…"

__

"It's not a plea. We demand it." the Räelan corrected, but Sephiroth ignored the remark.

"…starting a new colony." he finished, disregarding the audible gasps of the people as well. "Their world is overcrowded and badly polluted, so they set out to find an suitable planet that could become their new home. After many decades of travelling, they found Sandalya and…"

"But why do they have to stay right _here_?" the duke interrupted. "Don't they see the planet is inhabited?"

"And its ecosystem already established?" Valagar added thoughtfully. "Every new species may cause a mayor disturbance…"

They don't see it's already inhabited, for they perceive humans as mere animals, Sephiroth thought, but he kept the thought to himself.

"They don't have a choice. Their ships need fuel, their holds have a limited capacity and their lives, though long, are not eternal. They need to find a new home very fast, which means they're staying here regardless of what you'd say, not asking about your opinion. And from now on they'll claim Sandalya as their own…"

"What!?" Ongi exclaimed, raising from his chair. "You're not serious, are you!?" the question was directed at Sephiroth, who slowly shook his head, folding his arms across his chest.

"I'm merely a translator here."

"I'll never agree to that! Tell him to get the hell out of here!!!" the duke exclaimed.

The Räelan made a combination of slurry noises that didn't sound very nice.

"Watch out, my lord." Sephiroth said dispassionately, at the same time warningly narrowing his eyes. "He understands your every single word. He might take your comments amiss."

The prince paled slightly.

"Hey, whose side you're on!?" Kyro suddenly started.

"Yours, if that interests you." Sephiroth answered equally fast, managing to hide his anger.

__

"Forget your personal affairs." the Räelan demanded impatiently. _"Keep talking."_

Sephiroth looked back at Ongi. "Either you will comply with those demands or you'll bring a war upon this world; a war that you will certainly lose, since you're devoid of both strength and technology, which make the Räelans so powerful. Surrender… or many of you will die, that's exactly what he says."

"Is this your last word?" Valagar spoke, stepping in front of the throne. The alien didn't answer and Sephiroth was silent as well. "Is it?" Valagar repeated.

__

"How do I say 'yes'?" the Räelan inquired.

Sephiroth sighed openly and looked straight into Valagar's eyes, wordlessly telling him he had nothing to do with the final outcome. _"Move your head forward." _he told the Räelan.

__

"Like this?" he slowly nodded his head. The prince and his people were silent.

__

"Why do you insist on staying here_, instead of moving somewhere else?"_ Sephiroth asked at the same time. _"I told you they're not animals… they'll fight for their home…"_

"Our planet is dying, slowly, but surely. We need to leave it in order to survive."

"Unless you're deceiving me… and you just want to conquer Sandalya…"

"I'm not trying to win your compassion or to deceive you. What you've read in my mind is true. Words can deceive, but emotions cannot, and you know it."

Sephiroth looked up. The room was very noisy now, everyone was shouting; people were discussing the new situation among themselves. The Räelan made a loud noise that made everybody fell silent within a second.

"Your decision, my lord?" Sephiroth asked slowly.

"First you'll have to kill us!" Ongi shouted in his direction.

__

"Watch out, foolish human." the alien made a sudden step forward.

"Don't!" Sephiroth said sharply and the creature stopped, turning around to meet his intense, green eyes. "I advise you to be very careful." he addressed the prince and when he spoke, there was a threat in his voice. "He's taking your words very seriously." The silence fell once again. "Anyway." Sephiroth finished loudly and clearly. "He's just a messenger. He'll return to his ship now, leaving you some time to reconsider those words."

Without saying goodbye the Räelan spun around and noiselessly run out of the chamber. As soon as he disappeared, everyone began to curse and to argue, this time even louder than before.

"Do you realize what we have just done!? We should've stopped him!" Kyro snapped at nobody in particular.

"Why didn't _you_ do it?" Movitriss answered coldly.

It's not my fault, Sephiroth thought. (I haven't provoked the Räelan and besides, trying to stop him is not my business…)

***

"Perhaps it's better for the Humans to be destroyed…"

Aeris and Kyro gaped at Valagar in pure shock. Movitriss' golden eyes widened. Sephiroth stirred as well, even though his surprise wasn't so visible. He continued to look at the garden through a large window, the only window in Valagar's chamber. Once more it was raining. Sephiroth was tired, tired of everything, but instead of drowning in this ridiculous exhaustion, he tried to concentrate on the discussion.

"What!?" Kyro exclaimed so loudly that he probably could have been heard outside the chamber as well. "The Humans were always our allies… they're our grandsons and our heritage!"

Movitriss, though equally shocked, knew better than to judge the head of the Council recklessly. "What are you talking about, Valagar…?" she asked slowly.

The old man sat down on a wooden stool. "Let's assume the Humans would keep Sandalya, then. From now on, we have two options. The first one is to persuade the Räelans to travel farther and find a different planet with appropriate conditions to settle down. Such planets still exist; finding one of them is only a matter of time. However, the nearest place that meets such requirements is the Promised Land and they may eventually end their journey there, since they're running short of patience… and fuel."

"So… telling them to leave Sandalya means a danger for the Promised Land…?" Aeris asked, walking up to the window, where Sephiroth stood.

"Yes." Valagar nodded.

"What's the second possibility, then?"

"You already know the solution, don't you?" Movitriss answered bitterly.

"We have to kill them all." Kyro voiced the unspoken thought. Quite unusually, there was no sarcasm or hatred in his voice, just a strange seriousness.

"…Which is hardly possible." Valagar completed. "Starting a war between the Cetra and the Räelans would be a folly…"

"They're dangerous." Aeris sighed.

"Which means we should kill the humans instead? Because they're relatively defenseless and weak, compared to that race of predators?" both indignation and astonishment shone in Movitriss' eyes.

Kyro shook his head. "Everything went crazy."

"There are no alternatives. We let them stay here or we'll have to get rid of them all."

"Wipe out one race or another?" Sephiroth asked, turning away from the window. "Doesn't that sound too simple…?

Valagar looked him straight in the eye. "We will do what in my opinion is the best for the Promised Land."

***

I have to eliminate the Cetra before it's too late, Patrick thought, squatting down on the roof, touching its rough surface with his left hand. (They think they can dictate us the rules, tell us what to do… They care nothing for Sandalya. I need to get rid of them… fast, before they'll destroy everything with their ignorance.)

He silently watched the courtyard, waiting for a few servants to disappear inside the palace.

(True, it was Evorinth, who gave me this order, but he's a mere fool who doesn't even realize half of this order's importance. Evorinth…) Patrick smirked. (What an idiot. He thinks he controls everything, while in fact I've been in charge of Haghia for the last four years. He's blissfully unaware of so many things. He doesn't even know I'm a magician…)

The three men entered the building, leaving the yard empty and unguarded. Patrick whispered something and stood up, squinting at the ground. Then he jumped.

I have my own motives, he thought, landing noiselessly and agilely on his feet. (…Which actually makes everything much easier.)

***

He found his first victim in a broad hallway, armed, but alone.Lost in his thoughts, Kyro intended to pass the stranger, but Patrick stepped into his path.This strategy wasn't actually the smartest one - the assassin should've attacked from the shadows, killing the unexpecting enemy at once - but Patrick was a proud and arrogant man, and he decided to show off his power instead.

"You'll be the first one to die." he said, at the same time realizing it sounded somewhat stupid.

"Excuse me?" the blonde frowned. "Who are you?"

Patrick didn't smile. "Does it even matter?"

"No…" Kyro admitted, sensing that the other man wasn't joking. He laid a hand on the sword's handle. "…It doesn't really matter."

"A sword? Not even magical?" Patrick shrugged. "Killing you will be easier than I thought."

"A sword is often more powerful than magic." Kyro riposted, narrowing his brown eyes.

"Nonsense!" the magician laughed, jumping a few steps back to cast a spell as soon as possible, before the enemy would get any closer.

Kyro threw himself at Patrick, but the sorcerer was faster. Crossing his fingers, he waved his hand in the air with an eye-escaping speed, sending several ice bolts in Kyro's direction. The young warrior leaped to the left, hurriedly drawing his sword. With a furious scream he crossed the remaining distance, aiming a blow at Patrick's chest. The magician parried the blow with his iron staff. Iron meet silver with a loud clash; sparks flew. Patrick managed not to lose his footing, even though he held the staff with his right hand only. With the other, he started to draw a complicated pattern in the air. His lips moved, but not a single word was uttered. He kept his eyes fixed on Kyro's brown, determined ones. Realizing he had not much time left, the younger fighter pushed harder, making the sorcerer take a step back.

"Flame arrow" Patrick shouted.

Kyro succeeded in parrying the spell with his sword, but its impetus made him loose his balance. With a muffled gasp, he stumbled backward, and yet he momentarily leaped up, jumping in the air just in time to avoid another fire arrow that engraved a deep trace in the stone floor, hitting the base of a column and blowing into hundreds of miniscule flames. Another bolt barely missed his side as the young warrior did a stunningly quick twist in the air. Patrick cursed under his breath.

"Enough of these games." he frowned.

Suddenly a thunder appeared just under the gothic vault and a second later it hit Kyro with such force that the young man screamed, falling to his knees in a stupor. This time Patrick didn't waste any precious moments. Taking a nice, long swung with his staff, he hit the blonde warrior hard on his head, sending him unconscious to the floor.Then he straightened himself up. He wasn't even breathing faster. His thin lips curled up into a nasty, triumphant smile. "So…" he said, looking comtempitvely at the half-dead man. "The magic won, after all." he raised his staff above the man's head, ready to deliver the final blow.

***

"Not so fast."

Patrick looked up to see a tall, silver-haired man standing in the doorway.

"You were there all the time, weren't you!?" the assassin angrily hissed.

Sephiroth straightened up, smiling disparagingly. Yes, he had been watching the entire fight, all the time wondering whether he cared enough for Kyro's life to meddle in the struggle. He glanced at the unconscious form, lying in the middle of the hallway.

(What purpose do I have saving this his life? Actually, I dislike him much…)

"A fool." Patrick snorted. "He thought a sword would be more powerful than a spell."

Sephiroth shrugged. "Maybe he was right."

Slowly, leisurely, he walked up to the weapon lying next to the warrior's side. With one swift movement of his leg he kicked Kyro's sword, sending in flying up into the air. And when the weapon was just about to fall, he caught it, using his left palm.

"Left-handed?" Patrick smiled. "That might be interesting…" he touched his staff with the other hand, deciding he was already bored with stupid games. Besides, he still had his assignments to take care of…

A beam of light appeared out of nowhere and hit Sephiroth on the back. It was so unexpected and so painful, that he fell flat on his face, crying out in anger rather than in anguish. He cursed loudly as the sword slipped from his burned fingers. At first he was too surprised to defend himself, but he jumped to his feet just in time to see more hissing bolts rushing in his direction. Some hit the marble columns, exploding into tiny, blinding shards. Soon the entire hallway was filled with a white mist that bathed everything in a strange, eerie glow.

"So…" Patrick said with a nasty smirk of superiority. "How did you enjoyed that?"

"Guess what." a low voice whispered behind his back. "You missed."

Before Patrick could move he felt something cold and sharp touching the back of his neck. "Impossible…" he choked up.

Grabbing the man's right shoulder with his free hand, Sephiroth moved the sword.The move was quick, almost unnoticeable; it might have even seemed gentle, and yet it contained such strength that Patrick's spine had been cut in two. He died instantly, before he could even feel the pain or realize what was happening. Supported by the killer's hand, the body fell to the floor.Sephiroth stood motionless for a few seconds,dispassionately watching the blood dripping from the blade. It was beginning to form a small red pool around his feet.

He hoped that maybe he would feel some kind of guilt, pangs of conscience, remorse… anything. But he didn't. Not that it surprised him much.

With a loud clang Kyro's blade hit the ground.

***

"Chaos broke out on Sandalya." Valagar stated seriously, as soon as the five of them met once again in his chamber. "A war may be inevitable."

Kyro nodded. But he wasn't even listening to Valagar's words. His eyes were intently fixed on Sephiroth.

The young Cetra already felt better, cured by Movitriss' spell. She had found him in the same place where he had fell unconscious, not later than a few minutes after Patrick' death. Sephiroth had been already gone, but several guards had seen him leave the hallway. It hadn't been very difficult for Kyro to realize to whom he owed his life.

Saying he was confused was an understatement.

"However…" Valagar continued. "The hope still remains… if only we could talk to their leader…"

"Yeah, right…" Aeris whispered, too quietly to be heard. "Few more weeks and even I'll turn into a pessimist…"

"Tomorrow we're out of this city." Valagar decided. "We don't have much time to find their ship…"

***

"You don't really want to fight them, do you?"

He blinked twice before answering her with a question. "Do you?"

"No." Movitriss sat down beside him. "I don't. But what if that's a necessity…?"

Sephiroth said nothing.

"Tired, aren't you?" the woman finally asked. He nodded. He wasn't even looking at her.

They sat on a broad, stone stairway leading down to the garden. There was a fountain to their right, but it wasn't working anymore. It was already getting dark and the air was beginning to cool down. Distant stars were hidden by heavy clouds, which hung firmly at the sky.

Movitriss licked her lips in anticipation, wondering if she was brave enough to do what she subconsciously lusted for since the very first day they met."I can see you're worried. I can only imagine what you've been through and I admire your strength… to carry on." she paused. "Everyone else would give up. Don't get me wrong, but it's almost unbelievable that you still keep trying to lead a normal life…"

"In vain, I suppose." he muttered in response.

Movitriss took a deep breath. "You know what… I'm also worried… and afraid… Afraid that I won't have the courage to…"

She didn't finish the sentence, which made him lift his head and look at her questioningly. Movitriss' heart was beating faster now. So he was listening, she thought in a sudden surge of joy. So he cares, after all…

She placed her left hand on this arm and touched his cheek with the right one. He didn't look away to avoid her eyes, but his delicate face was almost expressionless. Almost. Nearly drowning in his calm blue irises, she slowly leaned closer and touched his lips with her own ones. When she started to kiss him, she expected him to become angry any second… but he didn't move, nor did he tell her to stop what she was doing.

She was incredibly warm and her skin was so smooth in touch… The intense, sweet scent of vanilla, which always surrounded her, was overwhelming… Already filling the rising excitement, Sephiroth returned the kiss, letting himself be pulled into a tight embrace. He had almost forgotten the feeling of being _that_ close to anybody. The feeling of safety…

It's only that I…

He slowly pulled away.

"Don't you like it?" she whispered. Her warm breath was tickling his skin. "Like this?" she kissed him again and this time it was longer, more daring, more passionate. Then she paused, waiting for him to answer.

"Please, don't understand me wrong, 'Triss." he finally said. "It's just that… I…"

(It's what?) he thought to himself. (What am I trying to say? That after those five years I'm unsure if I'm even capable of loving anybody?

Or is it… her… that I constantly think about.)

Aeris…

(But she'll never be mine! I can't even picture us like this… or making love… She's not the kind of woman to…)

He looked into Movitriss' golden eyes and found there nothing but passion, love and understanding. She had destroyed the distance between them without caring about his disapproval… or so it seemed. He liked that sort of independence. (Yes, I like her… much, I may even want her, but I don't think I would love her. I hope she realizes that…)

"Look…" he started.

"Shhh…" she put a finger on his lips. A hint of worry shone in her eyes. "Don't ruin it, before we even started. Don't say anything that might be painful to both of us… Forget it tonight…"

And he said nothing, letting himself submerge in another kiss.

***

The night started to get darker as Aeris watched Sephiroth and Movitriss through her window.

She wasn't sure if they were kissing or not, since they were both hidden in the shadow of the building, but the image of them sitting so close to each other was enough to break her vulnerable, sensitive heart. She tried to suppress those feelings of pain and jealousy, and kept repeating herself that she wasn't in love with Sephiroth… for she couldn't have been! He was so different, so distant…

There's really nothing that binds us, she thought angrily, trying to tear her gaze away from the window… and falling miserably.

Apart from the image of the two sitting together, she could see her own reflection in the glass.The infinite joy in her sparkling, green eyes… Where was it now…?

He'll be happy with her, she suddenly realized. (I talked to her yesterday; she seems to care about him much, besides I've noticed she's actually a gentle and compassionate person, no matter how tough she sometimes seems. She's beautiful, courageous, intelligent…)

just like him

Oh, stop it already, she scolded herself in her thoughts. He's not yours, he never was… and he never will be, because there's another woman who was faster than you…

(I wish I had listened to my feelings earlier, instead of letting my anger and my mind lead me…)

She touched the icy pane with her burning forehead, slowly closing her eyes.

(I've already lost the two most important men in my life. Zack left me one day and he never came back again… and Cloud… well… I couldn't just break his relationship with Tifa…) She bit her lower lip, promising herself she wouldn't cry over her miserable life. (But the problem is, I was never actually in love… like this… before.)

I'm in love

There was no point in denying it. She had fallen in love with the man who she once almost hated. Now, when she there seemed to be someone more significant than her in Sephiroth's life, she realized how much she actually cared for him… but now it was too late.

Great, she thought.

what does it matter?

(If only I had known it earlier… I wouldn't have let him go like that…)

Burying her head in her hands, Aeris started to cry. But as she the first hot tears streamed down her cheeks, the strange feeling of determination was rising in her heart.

(Why should _I_ always be the one scarifying for somebody else…? Why is it so, that only _I_ have to suffer…?)

She reopened her eyes, meeting her own gaze reflected in the window.

never again

(That's right. I'm not a silly child anymore, I'm a woman. And I _am_ going to fight for my happiness. I won't let Sephiroth disappear from my life just like that.)

End of Chapter 10

***

Author's Notes: I know what the most of you are thinking: "Sephy and what's-her-name [it's Movitriss, dammit!] kissing!? I hate this fic and I will never look at it again!" Well, it's your choice and your loss, then. A jealous (and determined) Aeris can be really dangerous! Besides, keep in mind that Sephiroth thinks about her…

Believe it or not, the sudden ending is drawing closer. Stay tuned. Oh, and please don't forget to leave your comments on this chapter! (…Uh, I was wondering… Would anybody like to correct the most terrible grammatical mistakes I made…? No one? Oh… well…)

Anyway, thanks for reading! I congratulate you on your persistence!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Squaresoft owns the two most important characters in this story, including a certain silver-haired villain everybody loves. Sad, isn't it? (Just you wait, Square! One day he'll be mine!) Er…well… ^_^;

Author's Notes: Oh my… *jaw hangs open* Somebody's reading my work!? *shock* …I guess it means I can't leave the story unfinished… Well… thanks for the kind reviews!

All right, on with the fic. Don't forget to call an ambulance before you'll start reading. Just in case you'll have a heart attack or something… but I hope you're gonna like this chapter anyway. Don't freak out at the beginning! Read patiently till the very end, unless you wanna miss something important.

One more thing: bits written in _Italics_ are, as usual, flashbacks.

Enjoy the story!

***

"If you've changed your mind, please, tell me. I'll understand."

Several wax-candles, almost completely burned out now, were throwing flickering shadows across the floor, bathing their half-naked bodies in a gentle glow. Movitriss lay on her back with one of her hands resting against her bare chest, the other one next to her head, palm upwards. Her red hair was scattered across the silk sheet. Sitting next to her, Sephiroth raised a hand to touch a diamond necklace that adorned her slender neck. The woman's golden eyes shone in the candlelight as she watched him intently. A single tear was drying up on her cheek.

"No." her answer was firm, or so it seemed. "I haven't."

Sephiroth didn't say anything, waiting for her to make the next move, unwilling to force her into anything. She didn't avert her gaze, nor did he.

How can one's eyes be so dispassionate and so warm at the same time…?, she wondered. (So concerned and worried, and yet so uneasy and distant…)

"I don't care about tomorrow…" she said under her breath, covering his hand with her smaller one. "Or maybe I do, I truly do, but not right now, not having you that close…" she trailed off, lowering her voice to a barely audible whisper.

He hesitated. Gods, she was so beautiful… "I don't want you to regret it later…" he finally admitted.

"I won't." she promised softly. "Don't worry. It's my own choice…" she touched his neck and it sent shivers down his spine. "Tonight…" she whispered. "I'll make you forget all your doubt…"

***

And she kept her promise. Next morning, however, by the time he woke up she was already gone. Opening his eyes, Sephiroth found himself laying on the edge of the bed, alone. He sighed and looked at the window, noticing it was very bright outside.

"…It's almost midday." he muttered in Wutaian, rubbing his tired eyes. "Weren't we supposed to set off early in the morning…?"

The sweet scent of vanilla that wafted in the air reminded him of Movitriss' presence. Besides, her golden irises still haunted his memory. He sat up, frowning briefly. (Where the hell did she go?) Feeling that it was already too late and that there was no need to hurry, he slowly got up and reached for his shirt. All the time he couldn't help thinking about her.

It had to be devastating for her, he realized. (No wonder she fled an soon as she got her chance. Most probably to turn everything over in her mind. Yesterday there was no time for second thoughts…

Damn, I really feel guilty… I made her suffer. But I had to, even in spite of my reluctance. To be forced to tell lies is a painful thing and I wanted to avoid that at all costs. I know I could have easily told her that I loved her, but that would be wide of the truth… and I didn't want her to suffer afterwards. Is she going to understand? Probably not… But she took it quite well. She didn't flew into a passion… and she was none the less anxious to…) A bittersweet smile crossed his lips at the memory of the previous night. (Do I simply underestimate her, then? Or maybe… she didn't really care much about me…?)

As a matter of fact, she did, and Sephiroth knew it.

(…I have mixed feeling about this. From the day we first met I felt somehow drawn to her… Nevertheless, I had to hurt her. …And it really pained me to see shock, sorrow and disappointment in the eyes of a woman.)

It's not the first time I saw such an expression, though, he thought bitterly, adjusting the collar of his shirt.

(I can only hope she's going to be all right…)

Five minutes later he was already outside, heading for the familiar garden. He expected to find Valagar there, since the old man preferred soft grass and the morning sun to the cold, drafty rooms of the castle. However, contrary to his expectations, Sephiroth didn't meet the head of the Cetra Council in the garden. He found Aeris instead.

She stood next to a small pound, staring absently at the murky water. Being absorbed in thought, she appeared entirely unaware of the reality. Even though Sephiroth knew it was silly, he somehow couldn't resist the impression that the woman had been waiting for him. In his opinion it was kind of ironical that she had to be the first person he had run across this morning.

Feeling slightly embarrassed for a reason he could not understand, but acting casually and nonchalantly as ever, he walked down the stairs. Stopping at the bottom, he yawned, stretching his arms and gazing upwards. Some clouds were visible in the sky. He looked at them knowingly, then shrugged. "Damn. Today's also going to rain."

Strange, he thought. (By the time I said those words loud she must have heard me coming…) However, she didn't turn around at once. And when she did, the man noticed immediately that she looked grave as never. Was it just his imagination, or was there really a shadow of unspoken accusation in Aeris' eyes?

Impossible

"Get ready." she said softly. "We're leaving in an hour."

"Where to? Have you spoken to Valagar?"

Instead of answering, Aeris walked up to him and grasped one of his hands. Sephiroth froze. Still holding his fingers, the woman slowly looked up. She looked serious and determined, but there was also a great deal of anxiety in her expression.

She hesitated. Her heart was beating so fast, she thought her chest would explode, and her mind was in a whirl. (What am I supposed to say now? What should I do? And, besides, what the hell's happening to me? I've never been a very shy person… so why is there a lump in my throat now…?)

"Sephiroth… I think we need to talk." she somehow finished the sentence without stammering or blushing to the roots of her hair. She went as white as a sheet instead, finally letting go of his fingers.

Bloody well, she scolded herself in her thoughts. (I'm such a looser! Right now he probably thinks I'm drunk or something…)

"Talk…?" he blinked. If he really held her for a drunken person, he didn't let it show. "…About what? Aeris? Are you alright?" his voice was quiet and concerned. He gently put a hand on her shoulder. She trembled under his touch and it didn't go beyond his notice. She looked as if she was going to faint in his arms. In fact, she almost did.

He forced her to sit down on the stairs. An awkward silence fell between them. Aeris was clasping the material of her beige dress so tightly that her knuckles turned white. With her head handing down and her hair covering most of her face, she looked fragile and miserable.

Sephiroth resisted the urge to walk away, leaving the woman like that, as if nothing had happened. He didn't know how to deal with such emotions himself, let alone how to help anybody. Even though Aeris wasn't sobbing, he knew she was crying silently, which made him feel more than just confused and uneasy.

Tears were staining her dress and Aeris couldn't help it. It's not how it was supposed to be, she thought, embarrassed and angry with herself. (I know I'm pitiful. But… I can't just tell him I love him, all of a sudden…) She finally raised her head and risked a glance in his direction.

'Would you tell me, what's wrong?' - his narrowed eyebrows were saying.

I… I can't, she suddenly realized, bursting into tears once more. Unable to bear the stress any longer, she threw herself at him, embracing him tightly, burying her head in his arms.

***

__

"I… I can't. I'm sorry."

He wasn't used to apologizing and these words felt somehow strange and improper in his mouth, but he knew that Movitriss deserved them. And, after all, it was one of the very few things he could give her.

"What stops you…? What are you afraid of?"

Afraid? No, he was not afraid. He had just realized something… very important.

***

Sephiroth could almost see the summer flying away, riding a cool, delicate wind. He looked up, sweeping his gaze over the distant treetops. The leaves were falling… and falling…

Aeris was slowly calming down in his arms. There was no need for further explanations. He understood what she had been trying to say. And it still surprised him.

***

__

"You hardly ever joke like that so I guess it's true… I mean nothing to you, right?"

"It's not that…"

Movitriss turned her head away, so that the candlelight shone in one of her diamond earrings. "You know… Sometimes I'm not sure whether I love you or not… Because if it's love, then it means I've fallen in love with you the first second I saw you… and I don't believe in such things… Love at first sight…?"

***

Closing his eyes didn't help; the memory was still vivid. Back then, their words and actions had been based on sincere emotions, and he couldn't deny it. They had spent a night together because they both wanted that. He felt a sudden pang of regret; he still had a sense of loosing something important. Movitriss' beauty, charm and eloquence were captivating, not easy to forget.

However… she was never the most important one.

He looked at Aeris. Many feelings passed through his heart at once: relief, happiness, concern, bewilderment… as well as the stings of remorse. He was responsible for betraying both of them…

for yesterday I didn't do anything against my own will, really…

But what he had done already belonged to the past.

***

__

"Don't." she put a finger on his lips. "You don't have to say anything… I understand… or so I think…" her voice was firm, but he could tell it was a false impression. "…And I see how you feel." she paused. "Can we stay together… just for tonight…?"

"Don't you want me to leave?"

"You expected me to throw a fit, didn't you…?" her smile was ironical, but otherwise very sad. Sephiroth was silent. She frowned at him. "I'm not sure, what we should do next…" she admitted, toying with her necklace. "…or maybe I do, but I don't think you're going to agree that easily. Am I wrong?"

His eyes widened in surprise. "But… aren't you going to be sorry afterwards…?"

She run her finger over his chest. "I don't know. But I think my biggest regret would be to stop right now. Let's forget about the future… at least till tomorrow morning." she leaned over him, starting to unbutton his shirt.

"You still… Do you really want to…"

"Shhh." she interrupted him. "Yeah, I do."

***

Moving as gracefully as a dolphin, a brown leaf drifted through the air. It smoothly flew over the heads of two people who were gently embracing each other as they sat on the stairs leading down to the garden. The woman's eyes were wet, while the man's expression was hard to tell.

Very gently, almost unnoticeably, the leaf fell to the ground.

***

The duke gave them fast chocobos, more food supplies than they actually needed, detailed maps… and he nearly exiled them from the castle, much to everybody's relief, anyway. They left Haghia behind, heading for a tiny village called Bachar. It was situated on the edge of the snowfield the Räelans supposedly landed their ship on.

The journey proved to be exhausting pretty soon, especially for Valagar and Aeris, but none of them complained. Since they were rapidly travelling south, it was getting colder every day.The landscape began to change as well.The golden fields of wheat were gradually replaced with some flat wastelands and every deciduous forest they rode across was more striped of leaves than the previous one. They all knew it would start snowing soon.

Six days later they stopped for the night in a wayside inn.

***

Aeris sat in front of the inn on a simple wooden bench, staring at a few bare willows that were slowly turning red because of the bloody glow created by the sun setting in the distance. It was a fairly cold evening, so in spite of a cloak and a pair of woolen gloves she wore, the woman felt quite chilly and her cheeks were slightly red.

Sephiroth sat next to her with his arms folded across his chest. With his eyes closed, he seemed to be dozing; though in fact he was only thinking. Few meters away there was Kyro, busy polishing his sword. Aeris threw a meaningful glance in his direction, as if silently begging him to leave, but the man didn't move. From the day Sephiroth had saved his life, Kyro sometimes kept following him like that, for no apparent reason, though, since he had never made an attempt to start a conversation and he still regarded the half-alien with some suspicion. Sephiroth didn't like it much, but he was patient of the younger man's behavior. At least they had both stopped spiting out threats at each other.

It was quiet, since the inn was almost empty; only a few gloomy travelers silently drank inside. In the middle of a muddy yard, a teenage girl, most probably the innkeeper's daughter, was feeding goose and hens. Dressed in a broad skirt that was made of carding wool, she moved among the birds with a bowl full of grain in her hands and a smile on her lips. Ignoring everybody's presence, she sang; her voice rung through the air, creating a nice melody. The girl both looked and sounded very cheerful.

Aeris lowered her head, watching the girl longingly, almost sorrowfully. "Why can't our life be so simple?" she suddenly asked.

Sephiroth raised a hand to his chin. A small, almost unnoticeable smile crossed his pale features. "Would you be happy, then? Living in the middle of nowhere, feeding poultry?"

She was used to mockery in his voice, but this time he was serious. Aeris shrugged and stood up, with her hands still clasped and touching her waist. "Perhaps…? Who knows?"

With his gaze still fixed on the sword, not stopping for a moment, Kyro spoke: "But that would've been awfully boring, don't you think?"

Sephiroth looked up to meet the woman's clouded eyes. The setting sun turned Aeris' long, chestnut chair into a living flame, flapping loosely in the wind. She looked as if she was going to say something, but she only took a deep breath and disappeared inside the inn.

The teenage girlwas still humming, spilling the grain over the birds' heads.

***

Sephiroth sat up on his bed, wrapping a blanket tighter around his body.

It was already well past midnight and the entire inn was immersed in a deep, peaceful slumber. However, the man couldn't sleep, for he was nervous and worried. He couldn't pretend that he didn't care at all. Well, maybe the problems of Sandalya meant nothing to him, but, much as he hated it, he had to admit he had already became personally involved in the upcoming conflict. He seriously doubted Valagar would be able to put an end to the unnecessary violence. The idea of fighting the Humans or the Räelans seemed ridiculous, unfeasible.

There's only one solution, he thought. (Because if we destroy the ship, they'll eventually send an entire fleet. Nobody will stand a chance against a powerful race that is determined to survive at all costs. And killing people would be useless, as well. How many humans live here, anyway? Thousands? Millions? No, someone has to persuade the Räelans to move farther. I don't believe Valagar will succeed, though…)

Sephiroth sighed, wrapping his arms around his knees.The blanket slide off his arms and when he straightened, he accidentally touched a cold wall with his bare back. Suppressing an irritated hiss, he trembled.

Inside, he was shaking with anger at the thought of destroying an entire intelligent race.

(They're not going to listen to one of the Cetra. I have to do it myself…alone. Well, I must try, at least… before it will be too late.)

He clenched his teeth, sincehe didn't feel very enthusiastic about speaking to the Räelans.He thought about Aeris.Constantly traveling for the past six days, they hadn't got another opportunity to talk seriously with each other.

(What does she _really_ feel? And… most importantly… What do _I_ feel…?)

He rested his head on his knees, briefly closing his eyes. When she had cried in his arms, back them, in Haghia, her eyes had been so sad, so frightened…

(Did I really… fell in love with her…? Or is it merely a… misimpression? Maybe I seek warmth, trust and affection so much, that I simply interpret her or my own feelings in a wrong way…) He growled in confusion. It wasn't easy to leave her, especially now. (No, of course I can't take her with me. That would be far too dangerous… for both of us.)

Though he was truly afraid of what the future might bring, he knew he had to go, or else he would regret it later. Being used to moving in the darkness, he got up and reached for his clothes. Two minutes later he left his room and, without making any noise, he quickly run downstairs, heading for the stable.

***

"What are you doing?"

Sephiroth had just finished fastening the girth and he was ready to jump onto the saddle, but he froze at the sound of a female voice he had instantly recognized. Cursing under his breath, he turned around. Aeris stood right behind him, tightly wrapped up in a woolen coat and yet shaking like an aspen leaf. It was very, very cold and she was barefoot, probably still wearing a nightgown underneath. She must have run downstairs, Sephiroth thought.

"What are you doing?" she repeated, looking at him expectedly.

He couldn't just lie or shout at her to leave him alone. He didn't want to. Besides, he was sure she was not going to let him ride away, at least not before he would answer her question.

"What's wrong, Sephiroth? Why are you leaving?"

He didn't really felt like explaining everything, though. The silence became uneasy, but he didn't say anything, hoping she would understand him anyway.

Aeris frowned, wordlessly considering the possible reasons. (Is he simply tired of our company? Weary of it all, just as I am? Running away from me? Or maybe… - she almost gasped at the thought - …maybe he's going to join the Räelans…? No, impossible…)

The ground was so chilly that her bare feet were burning. She flinched in pain.

He sighed. "I have to do something, or else Valagar's going to ruin everything…"

"And you're going alone?" she folded her arms across her chest.

"I'll be alright." he shrugged dispassionately.

"I'm coming with you." she momentarily answered in an equal tone of voice; it sounded as if she were throwing some casual remark or stating a mere fact. Her narrowed eyes suggested she had been neither joking, nor pleading.

Sephiroth bit his lower lip; there was no irritation in that gesture, just frustration. "No way." he sounded annoyed an amused, both at once. "Look…"

"I won't be a burden." shuddering with cold, she watched him impatiently. Never before had Sephiroth seen her so determined. She was not going to leave him a choice, or so it seemed. There was no way he could win against her strong resolve.

Something tells me I'm going to regret it very soon, he thought.

"Don't pack anything, just get dressed properly." he said quietly, having an almost painful expression written across his face. "And, please, do it quickly. It's going to dawn very soon."

"Promise me you'll wait here."

"I'm not going to leave you now." he sighed heavily. "…I promise."

Sephiroth didn't go back on his word. When Aeris appeared in front of the inn a few minutes later, he was still there, waiting more or less patiently. "Get on." he gestured at the chocobo he was sitting on, almost smiling at her surprise."That way it would be much faster." he explained calmly. "And there's really no time to loose if we want to catch a ferry across the canal."

***

"So, you've made a choice…" Movitriss said quietly.

She knew it wouldn't have been that difficult to stop him; if only she tried. In her mind, she was considering a few possibilities: running outside, starting a loud quarrel, casting 'sleepel' from the distance, stabbing Aeris with a dagger or reasoning with Sephiroth. Waking up Valagar or Kyro was a good idea, too.

And yet she did nothing. Paralyzed with grief, she couldn't even move. Her lips trembled. Another tear slipped out of the corner of her eye, which only irritated her further. She was not the kind of woman to cry easily.

(Back then, he said he was sorry. Maybe he wasn't lying… since he looked me straight in the eye as he was apologizing… He told me many things that night. Many frightful stories, about his life, mostly. I remember wondering, if I were strong enough to accept such a burden… And then, of course, I asked about Aeris. I had to know whether he really loved her…)

__

'I think so…' he hesitated. 'But then again… I almost forgot how it was to love anybody.'

Then they had made love. It was one the sweetest and saddest things Movitriss ever experienced. She smiled bitterly. (He was wrong… I don't regret it at all.)

but…

So he liked her as a friend, perhaps, but he had never considered her as his beloved. She already knew him well enough to be sure he was not going to change his mind easily. No matter how badly she wanted to run downstairs and slap the half-Cetra across the cheek, she knew it would be pointless. Besides, she was too proud to do something like that. And too smart to commit a suicide over one man, no matter how extraordinary he was.

However, at the same time, Movitriss couldn't help feeling angry and disappointed.She sighed, watching them disappear in the darkness.

***

It is folly, Sephiroth thought, forcing the chocobo to run straight at a high wooden barrier that separated the trail from a weedy meadow. He firmly grasped the reigns, bending lower in the saddle and focusing on the remaining distance.

"Hold on." he told Aeris, but there was no need to tell her _that_, really. She already held him as tight as it was possible.

(I must have been out of my mind to take her along… If only she had stayed with the Cetra… she would've been safer now.)

The chocobo jumped over the fence, not even touching it.

Still not used to the speed, Aeris nestled her face in Sephiroth's back, trying hard not to look at the ground, which was fairly easy in the man's presence. Right now, with her arms wrapped around his waist, she felt safe as never. She smiled happily, embracing him even tighter. Sephiroth's smooth shirt felt nice against her burning cheek.

(Why did he suddenly decide to act? Anyway, what does it matter? I guess he has his own reasons. I'm sure he's doing the right thing. I trust him with my life now…)

He could've left me behind, Aeris thought.

…But he didn't. He left _her_ instead…

She grinned at the thought, feeling some kind of a malicious, wild satisfaction. These dark emotions, however, soon gave way to a rising excitement.

(Maybe I mean something to him, after all…?)

End of Chapter 11

***

Author's Notes: I had fun writing this bittersweet chapter and I hope you enjoyed reading it as well. If not, then what did you expect? A real fight…? Some wrestling, perhaps? Movitriss the Cetra Mage vs. Aeris the Flower Girl? Nah, that's simply not my style. I prefer dialogues to violence; I guess you've already noticed that.

There are still at least two or three more chapters to write, so I'll better start working now. Stay tuned and don't forget to leave me some comments! *winks in a cute way* Please, review, 'cause your opinions are invaluable… and a little bit of encouragement is important for every writer. Thanks for attention, anyway! I love every single person who visits this page!


	12. Chapter 12

Lovely Lucrecia: And now it's time for everybody's favorite part: the disclaimer! Movitriss, Valagar and Kyro are mine! Who cares 'bout Sephiroth!? He's a freak… *a strange, frightening sound can be heard in the distance* …and such a looser!

*Lovely Lucrecia gets struck by the Meteor*

Sephiroth: Oops, I did it again… *walks away, whistling*

Lovely Lucrecia (from under the Meteor): No, I'm too young to… *dies*

Actually, a stupid passer-by used his last Phoenix Down on me, so I'm alive and kicking!

Author's Notes: Dear Readers, you're great! Your comments give me the strength necessary to continue this fic, so, please, keep reviewing! (I secretly dream of hitting 100 reviews one day…)

I had so much fun writing this chapter! Did I once say something about preferring dialogues to violence? Well, this part is slightly different. Lots of blood is spilt in a graphic way, plus, some characters are profane, but I decided to keep the present rating. C'mon, how many bloody scenes are there in an average movie?

One more thing: please, read everything! _Everything_, I repeat. Even the bits with Movitriss or Valagar, 'cause they are _very_ important. And try to be tolerant, too. I was finishing this chapter at seven a.m. after an _entirely_ sleepless night… *sigh* I'll never drink three liters of caffeine in the evening again, I swear! Yup, you've heard me right. Three liters. ^_^;

Ah, forget about that and enjoy the newest part!

***

"He's gone, 'Triss. The fairy-tale's over. I think you should really get it over with…"

"It's none of your business, Kyro." she glared at him. "I'm sick and tired of your snide comments, do you hear? Why won't you leave me alone?"

"Hey, I just want to be helpful!"

"You're making fun at my expense!"

"No, I'm not!" he shook his head in a childish way. "I'm trying to cheer you up!"

"I can see you really have nothing better to do." she sniggered. "Knock it off!"

"You might as well talk to a brick wall." he gave her a mischievous wink. "I'm not going to shut up."

"Why!?" she finally lost her temper.

"'Coz I'm bored." he immediately answered. "And also 'cause I don't wanna see your long face all day long. I'm acting for the best. At least you're mad now, instead of being gloomy. See?" he grinned at her.

"You're impossible!" she said angrily. "Do you really think you can figure me out that easily!? You don't understand anything, you're still a little kid who-"

"A kid?" Kyro hated that word, but he kept his cool.****"I'm only eight years younger than you, besides, I'll be twenty-one next spring! Anyway…" he shrugged, suddenly becoming serious. "We were never the best of fiends, I suppose, but I really like you, 'Triss, and I don't want you to cry because of that son of-"

"Don't call him that!!!"

"Is there something wrong, Movitriss?" Valagar's voice called from the behind.

"No." the woman turned round in the saddle, trying to act as natural as possible. She even smiled through clenched teeth. "Everything's perfect."

"'Triss!" Kyro playfully rolled his eyes, still rubbing his cheek where she had hit him. "You're such a looser…"

***

Of course Sephiroth realized that they were being followed, but he didn't really care. He had to find the Räelans as soon as possible and that was the only thing that mattered, so he still rode forward, hardly ever stopping. For the past three days Aeris had been following him without any complaints, bravely enduring all the difficulties of the dangerous journey.

I would've never expected this, Sephiroth admitted in his thoughts, smiling to himself. (In fact, she's nearly amazing. So persistent!)

and so beautiful

(Damn! Stop thinking of her, you idiot! What's wrong with me? I need to concentrate on the road, or else we'll get lost in the middle of nowhere!) 

"Sephiroth?" Aeris suddenly asked.

"Yes?" a loose strand of silver hair fell on his forehead and he impatiently brushed it aside.

"Let's stay together when everything ends." she said after a small pause. "I wish to settle down… here, on Sandalya."

Sephiroth pulled the reigns back, reducing the speed of his chocobo to a mere trot. Then he carefully looked at Aeris. "I thought you wanted to go back very badly…?"

She nodded. "I did… at first. But I've done a lot of thinking recently… You know, I won't be happy among the Cetra. They can be… pretty arrogant sometimes."

What's your problem?, Sephiroth thought, giving Aeris a strange look. "Your mother lives there." he finally spoke.

"I know…" she hung her head. "…but she has her own life now and she doesn't need me that much. I spent a few weeks in her house and I felt like an intruder almost all the time. You see… she has remarried."

The memory of Ifalna made Sephiroth smile bitterly, but he didn't say anything. Then, against his will, the mental image of Daniel Gast crossed his mind. He bit his lip.

sometimes I still wish he had been my father

"That guy, Zerkún, is pretty nice and all, but I guess I don't like him much." Aeris kept talking in the meantime. "I don't know why, but his presence makes me uneasy… Strange, isn't it?" she paused. "Anyway, what about you? I'm sure you don't want to go back, either. You wouldn't feel comfortable in the Promised Land. Sorry for being straightforward, but we both know it's true. Here, on Sandalya, we can start everything anew." she looked at him hopefully. "What do you think? Have you ever wondered what would you like to do next? In the future?"

He was silent for a long while. "No." he raised his head. "I haven't."

"You still can't believe you _have_ a future, can you?" she felt sorrowful all of a sudden.

"I guess." he shrugged, sighing heavily. "I'm still not used to the fact of being alive… making my own decisions…"

The both fell silent once more. Finally, Aeris smiled at him. "C'mon, think of it! We're both young! Let's not miss our chance!"

***

"It's utterly pointless. This place is huge!" Movitriss said, describing an exaggerated curve in the air. "How are we supposed to find this damned starship? I wish we had a helicopter…"

"It's hard to hide a starship in the middle of a snow desert, ya know." Kyro answered.

"Unless it's white…" the woman wondered aloud. "Or buried underground…"

"Underground, eh? Then we wouldn't have spotted it from a helicopter even if we-"

"Whatever." Movitriss grumbled. "I'll take us weeks to find it…"

"Don't worry." the younger Cetra shrugged nonchalantly. "We're just looking round. Tomorrow we'll take Valagar with us. He's got some kind of sixth sense, right?"

The woman sighed. "If it hadn't been for those regular snowstorms, we would've been able to see their tracks… I wonder if-"

"Wait a sec!" Kyro suddenly hissed.

"Kyro?" she stopped her chocobo as well, momentarily becoming tense. "What's wrong?"

"There!" he pointed at the distant horizon.

Movitriss frowned. "I can't see anything…"

Kyro stood up in the stirrups. Holding the reigns with his left hand, he used the other one to protect his eyes against the dazzling sun. With some effort he was able to make out several black spots.

"Räelans." he spat on the ground, sitting back on the saddle. "Five of them, if I'm not wrong."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. It's hard to mistake those shapes for anything else."

"Let's turn back."

"Too late, they've already noticed us and are running in our direction." the man answered, shaking his head. "I wonder what are those motherfuckers up to…"

"Try and behave!" Movitriss rolled her eyes and reached for her weapon. It was a silver axe strapped firmly to the saddle. She put it in front of herself, careful not to injure the chocobo with its deadly sharp edges.

Kyro met her eyes with an ironical smile, pointing at the weapon. "Since when have you became so hot-tempered?" the woman raised her eyebrows at the remark, but Kyro's expression quickly turned serious. He slowly adjusted his leather gloves. "Don't draw your weapon yet, unless you want to provoke them."

Movitriss nodded, lowering the axe. She visibly tensed as her eyes shifted to the approaching aliens. "They're fast." she murmured.

"Fast? That's not the word for it!" Kyro paused. "I wish I could understand their language… Those bizarre, hissing noises… they don't sound like words at all!"

"Because they're not. Their language isn't really based on words. They communicate by reading minds and interpreting images and emotions they are able to find. Those noises are only gestures."

Kyro looked at her doubtfully. "And how would _you_ know?"

"…Sephiroth told me."

Movitriss looked slightly depressed at the moment, so Kyro gave up further questions, concentrating on the Räelans instead. He waited in silence for the intimidating creatures to draw closer. One minute later the aliens came to a halt right in front of him. Actually, they stopped about ten meters away, but Kyro was sure each of them was capable of crossing the remaining distance in a single jump.

The young warrior narrowed his brown eyes, staring the Räelans up and down. Everything about them was disgusting. Their limbs were disproportionate, their skin did not cover the veins running underneath, their large eyes were devoid of eyelids… It made him sick and he nearly flinched in repulsion.

One of the aliens looked at him piercingly; then it made a quick movement with its tentacle. The other creatures immediately started to hiss, smack their tongues and gurgle.

"What might they be saying…?"Movitriss shifted in the saddle.

"Are they…" Kyro frowned. "…quarreling among themselves? Or maybe they're just ignoring us on purpose? Hey!" he suddenly turned in the Räelans' direction, trying to keep his voice calm and polite. "What is it?"

He momentarily regretted those words. One of the aliens did its best to answer and Kyro almost screamed as the creature's mind forced its way into his own brain, engulfing it in chaos. The Cetra moaned, clutching his head in pain, shock and confusion.

"Stop it!" he cried out. The Räelan let go of his consciousness and Kyro suddenly understood the sense of the message - it had been a warning - but it was already too late.

Kyro and Movitriss, both caught off guard, had a little time to react. With an incredible speed one of the Räelans jumped at the nearest rider. Drawing his sword, Kyro instantly dug spurs into his chocobo, making the animal leap forward. The alien's claws hit the bird, ripping its throat with a sickening sound. Trying to escape similar fate, Kyro threw himself to the side.

Movitriss' chocobo started to struggle. Terrified, it was jumping up and down and flapping its small wings in a foolish, desperate attempt to fly away. Movitriss lost her balance and fell to the ground. Grasping her axe tightly, she managed to roll away from the animal's massive legs. The panicked chocobo was running in circles now, trampling everything in its path. However, several seconds later the quickest alien sent it on its back with a single hit of a tentacle, then it cut the animal's belly wide open. The bird nearly _screamed_. Actually, Movitriss had never heard a screaming chocobo before, but right now she had no time to ponder it. She barely missed the attack of a third Räelan, which swung its tentacle at her legs. Miraculously, the agile beast somehow tripped up on the solid snow, landing flat on its stomach. Movitriss sprang to her feet, bringing her axe down at the creature's head, putting as much energy into it as possible. The blow didn't kill the alien on the spot, but it was dazed and unable to move. Keeping a tight hold of her weapon, the Cetra hit once more, this time crushing the opponent's delicate skull. Her luck quickly ended, though. She cried out in agony, feeling something large and sharp pierce her left arm from the behind.

Kyro was even less fortunate. A Räelan slashed him with its razor-sharp talons, deeply injuring his chest. The young warrior ignored the pain, immediately thrusting his sword to the left, slicing the alien's limb in two. He knew there was another monster behind his back. Rounding on his heel, he blocked a dangerous blow to his side. A few moments later he succeeded in stabbing the Räelan's throat, finally getting rid of the beast.

"They're too fast!" Movitriss hissed. "We're no match for them in a physical struggle!"

"Cast a spell!" Kyro growled.

"And how am I supposed to concentrate!?" she retorted, blocking yet another attack with a lot of difficulty, since her arm was bleeding heavily. She nearly wept in frustration. (How can we possibly win!? They hardly ever make any mistakes! It's so hard to hit them that we'll probably bleed to death first!)

Suddenly hundreds of small sparks appeared out of nowhereand the air became dense with electricity.

"Shit!" the woman cursed, forgetting her flawless manners. "_Wall_!"

A huge pentagram exploded under her feet, instantly shooting upwards to create a golden cage of pure energy surrounding her and Kyro. For a split of second nothing happened, but then the first thunderbolts crossed the sky. However, the magical barrier targeted them at back the caster, so the spell struck the Räelan instead, burning it alive. The enraged hiss of the remaining aliens filled the air.

Kyro's loss of blood was severe and the man's movements became slower and unsure. His opponent instantly used this at its advantage, hitting the Cetra with its massive claws, tearing the clothing, skin and muscles on his back, creating a huge, gaping wound. The blonde warrior stumbled and felt forward, nearly fainting, but in the last moment he managed to turn around and slice the alien's stomach, just before receiving a massive hit on the head from the behind.It made him instantly lose his consciousness.

Movitriss fell on her back. Her blood ran cold. While the Räelan was slowly leaning over her, she met the creature's deep eyes for a brief second. He saw pain and hatred in them.

And her own death.

White-lipped, she held her breath. The alien raised its claw.

No!

"_The wrath…_" Movitriss shouted, shielding her head with her forearms. She didn't even feel the pain when talons cut the flesh of her hands. "_…of heaven!_"

The sky turned black. Summoned by the spell, large pieces of rocks started to bombard the two Räelans, practically massacring them. The one that had tried to kill Movitriss fell on her chest. It weighted half a ton and the woman screamed; she could hear the sound of at least two of her ribs being broken.

The spell stopped as abruptly as it had started. Everything grew quiet all of a sudden. Movitriss freed one of her hands and wiped the tears of out her eyes, smearing blood all over her face. She clenched her teeth. Each breath she drew was a pure torture.

"Kyro?" she called weakly. "Please, help me! I'm trapped here!" a few seconds passed and nothing happened. "Kyro? Are you alright?" she tried once more, but there was no answer.

Overcoming the pain, she finally crawled from under the massive body. With her cheek pressed against the snow, she lay still for a few minutes, breathing shallowly and trying to concentrate. She knew she was badly hurt and that she shouldn't really move, but she was also worried about Kyro, which gave her the strength necessary to go on. "_Esuna…_" she whispered.

The spell eased the pain, but it didn't heal the damage. However, Movitriss couldn't just cure herself, because that wasn't how the magic of the Cetra worked.Every healing spell was based on the caster's living force: yes, it helped the wounded person, but it also weakened the healer at the same time, sometimes - though very rarely - to the point of dying.

Trying not to injure herself further, she sat up, looking around. The first thing she noticed was Kyro's motionless form, laying a few meters away.

"Kyro!"

Movitriss half-stumbled, haft-crawled to the man's side. The comet-like spell left him intact, nevertheless, he looked horrible. She took the youth's head in her injured hands, gasping at the sight. Kyro's face was covered with blood; his hair was all messed up. His brown eyes were wide-open and completely lifeless. He was not even breathing. Trying hard not cry, Movitriss touched his neck, frantically searching for a pulse. There was none.

"No! Wake up!"

This can't be happening!

"_Revive!_" she cried out, transforming all of her energy into that single spell, even though she knew it was useless. She prayed for a miracle, but Kyro's chest didn't move. The young man was dead.

oh no. not now

The world became dark for a few seconds, but she didn't collapse, perhaps due to her incredible determination. Her mind was blank, lost in despair. Minutes passed and she still sat next to Kyro's body, weeping herself out till there were no more tears left. Then she got up to her feet, looking round wildly. Both chocobos were long dead. The Räelans' corpses lay scattered across the snow. Their blood, which was obviously much colder that human's, had nearly frozen by now.

She knew she was too exhausted to drag Kyro back to the village; she even doubted she would be able to get there herself. She couldn't bury him, either, for the snow was very hard and she had nothing but a pair of bleeding hands to dig with. It meant she had to leave her friend here.What about scavengers?, she wondered. (Are there any on this desert? Kyro… It's so helpless…)

Unfortunately, she had no choice. Looking round her shoulder every so often, she began the hardest journey of her life.

***

She didn't remember much of the things that happened later. With an inhuman effort she somehow made it back to the village of Báchar. It was already past midnight when she finally crawled to the nearest house, passing out in the doorway. Just in time, because she was already purple with cold and the effects of _esuna_ were starting to wear off.

She woke up eleven hours later. The first thing she noticed was a faded flower painted above her bed. Then she saw Valagar's dark eyes. His face was calm, but she knew him well enough to realize he had been frantic with worry. In a few sentences she told him about everything.

"I see." the man spoke, lowering his head in pain. "…So they cannot be trusted…"

Movitriss' head fell back against the pillow. She didn't have the strength to stay awake much longer.

Have they killed Sephiroth as well?, she thought just before passing out.

"Don't worry." Valagar said, covering her pale hand with his bony one. "I will take care of everything, I promise."

***

Ignoring the blizzard, Aeris and Sephiroth stubbornly rode forward. All right, so maybe they didn't really _ignore_ it, because it was impossible. Coveredinsnow from head to foot, Aeris sighed and bent lower. Her fingers were stiff with cold, so she tried burying them in chocobo's feathers. The bird was wonderfully warm and also visibly tired, but it kept struggling through the endless snowdrifts.

"Maybe we should turn back!" the woman's words were drowned by the howling wind.

"No way! We are too close to give up! The cave lies right ahead!" Sephiroth shouted back. As a former soldier, he was used to such weather, but it didn't mean he liked it very much. At least he knew what he was looking for, for he had seen the hideout of the ship in the Räelan's mind.

"We won't find it in this storm!" Aeris nearly scowled.

"We will!"

"But how!? Can you see anything!?"

"No, I can't!" he admitted. "But I'm not following my eyes! Don't worry, I can already sense their presence! Besides, the blizzard won't last long, believe me! Just don't give up now!"

"I won't." she mumbled. "You know I won't."

***

Sephiroth had been right. The violent storm ended about twenty minutes later. Drenched to the skin and chilled to the marrow, the two riders crossed a frozen stream, entering a small valley.Suddenly Sephiroth stopped. "There's an entrance." he pointed at a small hole visible in the nearest slope.

Aeris sighed. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?

The man jumped down from the saddle. Patting the exhausted bird on the head, he looked up, meeting Aeris' worried eyes. "Would you wait here for me?"

She shook her head. "No, stupid. I'm going with you."

Resigned, he closed his eyes, resting his forehead against the chocobo's soft neck. "Don't you understand? It's too dangerous." he let go of the bridle. "You're a Cetra. They may not tolerate you."

"So what?" she replied. "They don't tolerate humans, either, and you're a human, after all."

He frowned, raising his head. "Not exactly. More importantly, that not what _they_ think."

"I'm not leaving you now." Aeris' eyes were equally hard.

Sephiroth was silent for a long while. "Stay here." he finally told the bird and the large animal warked in an answer. "See?" Sephiroth said with his usual, ironical smile. "Even a chocobo is more obedient that you."

She grinned at him, jumping down as well. "A chocobo cares about you less than I do." she answered smoothly.

"Are you ready?" he ignored the remark, since it made him feel a little awkward.

"Yeah." she answered. "Let's go."

***

The entrance to the cave seemed surprisingly small to Aeris. "How did they manage to put a starship _here_?" she asked Sephiroth as they were both walking down the narrow corridor.

"This is simply one of the many holes leading underground." he explained. "They used another tunnel, most probably."

Aeris nodded and started to look round. Devoid of sunlight, the cavern would have been jet-black, if it hadn't been for the strange, luminescent ferns, mosses and lichens that grew inside. The plants radiated light, filling the tunnels with a gentle, eerie glow.

"Strange…" Aeris felt a shiver running down her spine. "I always thought that the sunlight was necessary for all plants to live… even my flowers in Migdar needed some. …But these things here are alive. How's that possible? There must be some kind of energy coming from-"

"Wait." Sephiroth suddenly stopped, grabbing Aeris hand. "I can hear footsteps behind us." he frowned. "Human footsteps."

Aeris looked at him questioningly. "But how?" she turned around, but much to her irritation she couldn't hear or see anything.

"I don't know." he took a few steps back, pulling Aeris as well. They both hid behind a large pile of some loose rocks.

"Gods…" Aeris' voice trembled.

"It's just one person." Sephiroth said, lowering his voice. "Either very brave or very stupid to come here. We'd better stay careful, though."

Aeris held her breath. She could also hear the footsteps now. Sephiroth said that this person was a man and she trusted him, but her vivid imagination still told her to expect a demon of some sort. She suddenly noticed a dark shape in the distance; a shape that was growing closer with every second.

"What!?" Aeris whispered. "It's Valagar!"

The intruder stopped abruptly, raising his staff. "Who is there!? Show yourself!" he demanded.

Sephiroth let go of Aeris' hand and stepped into Valagar's field of vision. "What are you doing here?" he asked calmly.

The Cetra's face remained expressionless and it was impossible to tell whether the man was surprised or not. "I came here to solve the problem once and for all."

Coming to a halt next to Sephiroth, Aeris shook her head. "What do you mean?"

"The Räelans proved to be unpredictable and extremely dangerous. They cannot live in peace with the Cetra. Therefore, they have to be eliminated. It is the only possible option and I will see to that."

Aeris was speechless. Sephiroth stared at Valagar in fascination. "You want to kill them all?"

"And you've come here alone?" the woman added in shock.

Another imbecile, she angrily thought. (Just like Sephiroth! Does he really think he can fight them _alone_!?)

"Why?" Sephiroth asked, regaining his composure. "Why do you think there's no other way? Why won't you let me talk to them instead?"

Valagar's face was still blank, but the hint of pain in his dark eyes wasn't lost on Sephiroth. "Yesterday they killed Kyro…"

"What!?" Aeris exclaimed, grabbing Sephiroth's arm.

"…and Movitriss is barely alive. Had I been with them, perhaps I would have been able to prevent this tragedy from happening…" he trailed off.

Aeris was at a loss for words. She frantically looked round, as if expecting the aliens to emerge from the shadows any second now. Sephiroth said nothing.

"Why!?" Aeris got her voice back.

"Movitriss does not really know. The Räelans had attacked them first. She swears they had not done anything to provoke them."

Sephiroth lowered his eyes. "Is she all right?"

"She is. However, nobody will be safe unless we take care of the Räelans." Valagar said. "That is why I finally decided to act. Do not worry about me; I can handle them myself. You do not have to come with me, though I would appreciate your help. Follow me or step aside."

Sephiroth tensed. "You're kidding."

"I know what you intended to do, but it is over now. I make decisions here. If you are not going to help me, step aside." Valagar repeated in a low, threatening voice.

"Don't you understand?" Sephiroth wrung his hands in frustration. "You can't just _kill_ them! It's useless! You won't achieve anything but more bloodshed! Seeking for revenge, they will send yet another starship…"

Aeris shook her head rapidly. "Who gave you the right to start a war!?"

"I am the head of the Cetra Council." the man said coldly. "Your superior."

"Not mine." Sephiroth hissed. "I'm afraid I can't let you do something very foolish. You'll have to kill me first."

"I am a patient man and I can tolerate your anger." Valagar was serious. "But I cannot risk the fate of the entire universe because of your obstinacy."

"I won't let you pass."

"Then you are leaving me no choice." Valagar's answer was cold. "Out of my way."

"No! Don't!" Aeris shouted, but her voice was lost in the hiss of a fire spell.

Shielding her head with her forearms, she instinctively fell to the ground, trying to crawl away from the fight. At least she knew she wasn't Valagar's main target. She stopped when she touched one of the mossy walls with her back. Frightened and completely helpless, she observed the two men that were apparently trying to kill each other.

No, she moaned in her thoughts, they're making too much noise… (The Räelans will become alarmed pretty soon! And then… will they attack us? Gods…) She paled. (No, please, not now! Not when they're fighting…)

and why the hell are they fighting!?

(Sephiroth…)

Unlike Aeris, Sephiroth didn't feel afraid at all, actually, was sure he would win. Valagar annoyed him, because he was a surprisingly tough opponent for his age, even though the magic he used wasn't very dangerous. It's nothing I've never seen before, Sephiroth thought, destroying several bolts of energy with a mere wave of his left hand. He simply waited for the Cetra to become tired.

In fact, he had seriously underestimated his opponent. And it was a very serious mistake, for Valagar was not going to hold back any longer.

The old man didn't like being disregarded and finally grew impatient with Sephiroth's nonchalance. Wordlessly, he broke an unfinished spell and threw his staff to the ground.

Sephiroth snickered. (What, giving up so easily?)

The Cetra's gray robe started to move, as if pulled by some invisible wind.

(Ah. I'll take it as a 'no'.)

The ex-general frowned, wondering if he should launch a direct attack now and end this travesty. Shrugging, he decided to wait and defend himself when necessary. Unsure of what to expect next, the man concentrated and started to draw a protective sign in his mind.

Valagar's eyes snapped open.

From behind his back a magnificent dragon erupted. Born of the holy light, the brilliant, half-transparent beast had no real body, but it was still one of the most dangerous creatures alive. It made an unearthly sound and rushed forward with a lightning speed, nearly destroying the entire cavern in the process.

How bloody interesting, Sephiroth thought, throwing the magical barrier in front of himself. Everything turned much more difficult than he had expected and he knew he had to get ready for some serious trouble. However, he definitely wasn't prepared for the thing that happened next.

The white serpent crushed his barrier with ease.

WHAT!?

Sephiroth's astonishment wasn't long, though. The impact of the hit was so powerful that the man fell backwards as if he were a mere doll. Upon hitting a stone wall, he instantly fainted. His inert body sank to the ground.

"Sephiroth!!!" Aeris broke into a run.

End of Chapter 12

***

Author's Notes: What's going on!? Is everybody going to die!? Sephiroth & Aeris included…!? I don't like cliché happy endings, so you may as well expect it… I love Sephy, but it doesn't mean I can't kill him in my fic… Actually… *a very long pause* why not…? Let's make everybody suffer. Movitriss will be the only one to survive! I might be completely serious this time…

Still breathing after all those shocking news? Please, review, or you'll never know the end of this story! Do you have any suggestions concerning Sephiroth's fate?

Last thing: Movitriss' weapon is… an axe!? Yeah, I know she's a delicate woman, but I decided to be slightly original, even though I personally prefer swords (gunblades too, for that matter!) to anything else.

Oh, and by the way: Yay, two weeks ago I somehow made PlayStation games work on my PC! Yeeees! Now I can play such titles as _Grandia 2_, _Valkyrie Profile_ or _Xenogears_! And, most importantly: _Final Fantasy IX_!!! I've already finished the awesome _Chrono Cross_! Yeah! I'm so happy! ANIME RPGs FOREVER!!! No more stupid things like _Baldur's Gate _or _Might and Magic_!

A voice from the audience: Who cares!?

*a strange, frightening sound can be heard in the distance…*


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: Sephiroth and Aeris are the only things in this story that belong to Squaresoft. (Argh. A dull and boring disclaimer this time… am I lacking creativityor something…?)

Just in caseRose Flameis reading this: the term _Räelans_ is my own idea;Squaresoft has nothing to do with it. I put the a-umlaut there because I learn German a lot. _Jawolh! Deutsch ist doch die beste Sprache der Welt, stimmt's? _Apart from English. Which is even better. ^_^;

Author's Notes: Dear Readers, you're wonderful. *gasp* I made it… 100 reviews!? Yeah! I still can't believe it and I'm sooo happy! You're great, people! Great, I tell you! *sings: _You're simply the best! Better than all the rest…!_* I want to hug all of you! *grins broadly like an idiot*

Yeah. And now on with the 13th chapter of my story! Read it till the _very end_, or else you'll miss (or misunderstand) the most significant information …(which is of course: have I killed Sephy yet? Will I ever?)

Sorry, I was too lazy to write a better chapter. Nevertheless… enjoy!

***

He forcefully hit the wall with his back, probably breaking a few ribs or even his spine, at least judging from the agonizing pain that immediately shot through his entire body. He let out a small, inaudible gasp, desperately struggling to breathe and instantly discovering that it was next to impossible. The pain filled his lungs with liquid fire. However, the tormenting sensation ended very quickly, almost before it had even started.

Why am I so cold, so empty all of a sudden?

Sephiroth's eyelids fell down, allowing the darkness to fill his field of vision at once. He felt the twangs of panic piercing his heart, but he quickly composed himself.

Funny… I was always sure I would enjoy dying…

The fear disappeared, leaving him nothing but the sense of bitter emptiness.

(I was sure I would, for my life was never a very happy one and I never cared much about it. Actually, there were times I hardly desired anything more than death. And I never feared it… I was a soldier… death treaded hard on my heels everywhere I went.

There were times I hated myself for being alive.

When I was still a child I had all the attention I could get… not the kind of attention I desired, though. All they did was talk _about_ me, not _with_ me. …And I was very lonely. So lonely I was sure life was impossible to endure… I tried a suicide when I was eight… but I failed to get free back then. Since then, I kept trying… like when I turned sixteen and ShinRa, that son of a bitch, named me a general. I thought I wouldn't be able to bear such responsibility… and I guess I just wanted somebody to notice me… the real me, not the perfect killing machine everybody saw.

A scolding from my farther was all I got.

When I finally grew up… some things got better. Some got worse. For example, I hated being famous - when I first saw my face on the cover of some popular magazine, I thought I'd freak out. But I also had my share of fun.I knew a few people, both male and female, that considered themselves as my friends - even though I never trusted them, it was nice to have somebody to talk to, to rely upon, or to spend holidays with. It felt good to be cared about, if only a little… But I always felt different. I was, I still am and I will always remain an outcast.)

Some life, he mentally shrugged. (And now… after all those events in Nibelheim… after all I have done in the past year… I carry a burden that is hard to leave behind.)

Sephiroth would have sighed, if he still had had a body to control.

(Life… Why do people care so much about it? Generally speaking, it's utterly pointless. First, we are born. Then, from that point, we blindly struggle into death's direction, experiencing different emotions, overcoming obstacles, trying to deal with the merciless blows of reality. And we all eventually fade and xxx cast? into oblivion. Sooner or later, it's only a matter of time… Are we even able to shape our fate ourselves? What about the choices we make? Are they entirely ours? Or is it merely a coincidence how our life turns? …For other people and different circumstances constantly influence us, don't they?

Do I believe in fate?

Not anymore… but I used to… When I was a child I used to think it was some cruel destiny that made me the son of Hojo… And much later, when I've learned that my life had been carefully planed from the very beginning… Back then… I felt so empty inside…

Phew… Get it over with, Sephiroth. What does it matter now? the future is more important… What comes next? What shall I live for…?)

Aeris…?

__

"Let's stay together when everything ends. I wish to settle down… here, on Sandalya."

Her green eyes… radiating with warmth… filled with hope. Beautiful.He knew that she really meant those words. That she really cared. Of all people, she cared the most.She was ready to give him everything, asking nothing in return. It was as simple as that.

__

"…I'm sure you don't want to go back, either. You wouldn't feel comfortable in the Promised Land. Sorry for being straightforward, but we both know it's true. Here, on Sandalya, we can start everything anew."

(Start everything anew…?)

__

"…Have you ever wondered what youwould like to do next? In the future?"

(She wants to spend the rest of her life with… me? Many women had told me that before… Why did _she_ sound so… so… sincere… so… determined…)

__

"You still can't believe you have_ a future, can you?"_

(Why is her offer so special…?)

because she knows ME

(Yes. The _real_ me. Who I really am. And she still wants to stay. Even though she's aware of what I'm capable of, she doesn't care about the beast that lives inside of me. And she doesn't care about my past, either, for what she sees is only the future… our future.)

His rational mind was sinking in an endless ocean of confusion. Something was wrong… he could not pull his thoughts together anymore… his consciousness was fading, drifting away. He partially realized what was happening and no, he wasn't afraid. Just sorrowful.

(Aeris… How I'd love to stay with her…)

***

Aeris wasn't even crying; she was still too much shocked to accept the fact that the man she loved lay motionless at her feet. She didn't even felt sorrow. Just some strange sort of hollow emptiness. Shaking her head in disbelief, she slowly sank to her knees and grabbed Sephiroth's slender wrist.

Please!

Her hands were shaking badly as she searched for some signs of life.

In spite of some serious injuries, including a few broken ribs, Sephiroth was still alive, but his pulse was very weak and his breath shallow. His pale lips were twisted in pain.

Resting the tip of his staff on the ground, Valagar chose to break the silence with a clearing of his throat. "Leave him. He is dying," the Cetra said matter-of-factly.

(No, this can't be! He can't die! Because I… I… love him… Damn it! Sephiroth, don't leave me alone!)

Aeris' eyes filled with tears as various thoughts passed through her mind at the same time.Leaping to her feet at once, she cast a hateful glance in Valagar's direction.His expression betrayed… mild compassion? It made Aeris furious. Something inside her snapped.

"You," her usually gentle voice was dripping with poison."It's all your fault!" cold, immense fury shone in her green eyes. "You'll pay for this!"

"Stop it, silly child," the Cetra shook his head. "I do not want to fight you…"

Aeris bit her lower lip. Very hard. Warm blood trickled down her chin, but she didn't feel any pain. (If only I had the power to defeat Valagar… but I'm just a weakling… a miserable girl… I'll probably die at his hand, too… But… He's just hurt Sephiroth! Ruined my life! I can't simply step aside and leave this son of a bitch unscratched!)

"…And I never intended to kill him," Valagar was saying. "I am sure you are aware of th-"

"Shut up! It doesn't matter who started! And it don't care whether you did it on purpose or not!!!"

Aeris clenched her hands into fists. Some strange energy stirred in the depth of her soul. The world became white in her eyes and she was not able to control her own body any further. Her conscious thoughts were not important anymore. It was merely her rage that counted.

Aeris' fingertips itched with power that burned under her skin. Her eyes had run dry long ago. She felt something like electricity running down her spine. She opened her mouth to scream, but not a single sound escaped her bleeding lips.

"No, Aeris," she heard Valagar's calm, and yet obviously worried voice coming from behind the white curtain of pain. "Stop it before you will hurt yourself…"

Sephiroth is going to die because of HIM!!!

"Shut uuuuuup!" Aeris' high-pitched scream pierced the air as the spell exploded.

***

The whole cavern started to tremble. Valagar was probably dead, but Aeris couldn't care less at the moment. Not fully aware of what had just happened and feeling terribly weak, she fell to her knees next to Sephiroth's side, taking the man's head in her hands. His body was still warm, she noticed. A few seconds later her eyes widened in shock. Sephiroth was still breathing.

"How-" she stammered.

A small piece of rock fell down from the ceiling, cutting Aeris' back. Her vision got blurry all of the sudden and she instantly realized the danger they were both in. The cave was going to collapse. Aeris desperately tried to get back to her feet, but her legs failed her. She was completely exhausted.

No!

(I… must… help…… him………)

Helplessly squeezing Sephiroth's white shirt, Aeris fainted.

***

How much time had passed? A few minutes? Hours? She wasn't sure. Her head hurt much and all her limbs were sore… Aeris groaned. Something wet was resting on her cheek. A plant? With her eyes still closed, she tried to make a guess. Then she slowly raised her hand and gently grasped the irritating branch. It felt a little bit sticky to the touch, but it was nicely soft and warm at the same time.

Moaning, Aeris slowly opened her eyes.

"………"

A Räelan was leaning over her. And she was squeezing the tip of its purple tentacle.

"Aaah!" Aeris screamed in terror, instantly bolting into sitting position and letting go off the alien's limb. Still on the ground, she frantically tried to move away, but her back met resistance.

Sephiroth!

Instantly forgetting her pitiful attempts to escape, she grabbed the man's arms, pulling him closer. Sephiroth was unconscious, but his chest was still moving to Aeris' infinite relief. She cradled him protectively in her lap.

Scared to death, she looked up very slowly. The color ran away from her face as she noticed that she was actually surrounded by several aliens that stood in the distance. Valagar was nowhere to be seen.

The nearest Räelan was so close that she could feel its calm, warm breath all over her face. It tilted its had and watched Aeris curiously. It waited.

(They… They could've killed me when I was unconscious… But they didn't.)

Feeling slightly comforted at the thought, Aeris dared to speak."W-What? What is this t-that you w-want?"

"…You w-want?" the alien repeated. The words sounded strange but they were not impossible to understand. Aeris gasped.

(Is it… reading my mind…? Maybe… But… isn't that supposed to be a painful and unpleasant experience…? I can't feel anything special at the moment, well, apart my own fear that is tearing me apart… So it didn't try to force its way into my brain, then…? Why…?)

These large, somewhat pretty eyes were so unnerving… Was the Räelan angry? Curious? Threatening? Dispassionate? Neutral? She could not read the emotion hidden behind these glassy irises. They seemed completely empty… and yet Aeris knew that the creature certainly _had_ feelings.

Maybe it's a female Räelan, she thought. (She… if it really is a _she_… is much smaller than the creature we met in Haghia… And her voice sounds vaguely female, too… somewhat soft… if that's even possible…)

(Does… _she_ understand me?)

"Don't hurt me," Aeris licked her chapped lips and tied to smile. "You see," turning the palm upwards, she slowly stuck out one of her hands. "…I'm not a treat at all. Not at all," she repeated, unsure what to say next.

"Not at all," the alien said; she imitated Aeris' intonation almost perfectly. "I'm not a threat at all."

Aeris gulped. (Does she really understand what she's just said…? Probably not… she's merely repeating my words in a mindless fashion, oblivious of their meaning. But… she… still hasn't attacked, so…)

She unconsciously dug her fingernails into Sephiroth's arm.

(What can I do, dammit!? And what are the Räelans up to…? We can't even communicate… it's helpless! Should I try to run away? Ah, no! I can't leave Sephiroth here! Besides… They'd rip me to pieces in a matter of a few seconds… Please! Somebody help me! Sephiroth…) frowning, she looked down at his pale, serene face (…why won't you wake up…?)

The female alien slowly moved one of her tentacles forward and carefully touched Sephiroth's face. Aeris winced, but she didn't even dare to draw a single breath. Paralyzed with fear, she could only watch as the creature proceeded to caress the man's cheek. A few other Räelans started to hiss.

Please, don't hurt him, Aeris repeated the mantra in her head. (Please, don't, please…)

In spite of her instincts screaming at her to do _anything_, the young woman didn't move, since she knew that any resistance would be pointless. Though she had defeated Valagar with a single limit break only a few hours ago, she was certain that she wouldn't be able to repeat such an achievement very soon. Therefore, she waited in silence, painfully aware of the fact that she was completely dependent on the Räelans' will.

***

__

"Wake up, child."

Hm…? What…?

Sephiroth's eyes opened slowly. All could see was the infinite darkness spreading in front of him.

(Strange… I thought I heard someone calling… or was it… merely a dream…?)

…Am I dead?

__

"Not yet," the voice in the back of his head spoke again.

Sephiroth shivered. The message didn't consist of words, so he instantly reckognized the 'speaker'. It was a Räelan… a female one, well, at least judging from the distant and vague stream of her thoughts; thoughts that he could easily sense but hardly comprehend.

__

"Where am I?" he carefully formed the words in his mind.

__

"Right now? In the middle of nowhere, I'm afraid. And it's up to you to wake up. Would you? Please?"

She was… asking him to wake up?

__

"Our envoy told me about you," the nameless voice continued._ "I didn't believe him at first, though," _she paused. Sephiroth could effortlessly feel her curiosity and amusement._ "…One of our kind, and yet a human. Or least that is what you believe…"_

"Because that is what I am," he wearily opposed. The comment left him truly irritated, but he was too weak to argue with the alien._ "…Could you please tell me what's going on?"_

"I could ask you the same question… Why did you all came here? And what happened? Why is one of the Cetra dead?"

AERIS!

The female Räelan mentally winced at Sephiroth's shock. His strong, negative emotions were obviously hurting her as well.

__

"Aeris?" she slowly repeated the unfamiliar term; it was actually the first word used in their whole silent conversation._ "Is that how you called the male?"_

It took him a few long seconds to finally comprehend what she had meant. _"No… What about the woman?"_ the Räelan was pleased with his relief.

__

"She is safe… for now. Honestly… we don't know what to do with her. She's one of the Cetra, but… I can't sense any hatred in her, even though I haven't tried to read her mind yet… I can only guess her feelings from the way she's breathing or watching me… and… I don't really know… I would've killed her if she had been hostile, but… she's quite different… and killing a weaker creature that seems friendly doesn't sound very good, right…?"

"Don't hurt her!" with lots of effort, Sephiroth somehow managed to repress his anger and distrust. _"…Please."_

"I can't promise you that. Anyway, let's not speculate about the future right now. …It's really time for you to wake up."

End of Chapter 13

***

Author's Notes: Aeris saving Sephiroth's life…? Isn't it always the other way around? Precisely. And that's exactly why I had to write this chapter… it was fun to toy with the cliché, if only a little bit.

So, Sephiroth shall live… for now… *smiles maliciously* …but what happens next? Is Valagar dead? What about the long awaited and inevitable Aeriseph love confession? Will there ever be one? Or some cliché kissing stuff? What about Movitriss? (She's still alive, may I kindly remind you… *breaks into evil laughter*)

This story will have quite an abrupt ending, believe me, but you still have to wait a little bit. Anyway, I want to finish it as soon as possible, even though I consider writing as my serious hobby. The only problem is, I can't really decide what shall I write next… A fic (yaoi?) involving Rufus? Cloti romance? A psychological/action story concerning the Turks? (Argh, Tseng-sama and Reno-san are so hot!) An FF8 story, for a change? Or… an _Angel Sanctuary_ fic…? (My beloved Kira-sempai! *drools* Rosiel-sama! I can't get these manga bishies out of my head…)

Please, review this chapter! Pretty please? I really need to know whether somebody is still interested in continuation. Oh, and please, if you have time, read _To escape the suffering_, a pathetic Sephy-centric story I wrote about three weeks ago. It was supposed to be the mayor part of this chapter anyway, but I turned it into a separate fic instead.

Thanks for all your support! See ya next chapter! (And it would be better than this miserable one, I promise!)


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: Squaresoft owns the two most important characters of this story, but Movitriss belongs to me - it doesn't make me feel very proud, but still… *sigh*

Author's Notes: There's going to be a lot of remarks this time… First of all:

"I hate Movitriss! Make her die!!!" - I practically burst out laughing every time somebody writes that. Keep flaming her - I don't mind your spiteful comments! ^_^ Actually, I'm very happy to know that the original character I created makes you show such signs of excitement… ^___^

Secondly, lots of people say my English is ok., so I guess I just have to trust them… (though I'm still very skeptical…) Thanks for the flattery, anyway!

It took me quite long to post this chapter, mostly because my flat was being redecorated (which means: ruined ^_^; ). My computer lay safely in a box (somewhere under lots of other boxes T_T ). Every day I had to get up at six o'clock, in order to do my homework in the school library, before the lessons would start (not to mention staying after hours for the same purpose). Plus, I had to sleep at my friend's house, which was - as expected - great, but also very exhausting (we didn't get much sleep that night, right?). Altogether, the previous four weeks have been terrible, I tell you… and the work's not finished yet.

Anyway, here's the next chapter of _No choice left_! I still can't believe I've made it so far! Oh, and thanks for the reviews! *bows deeply*

Enjoy!

"We are never more true to ourselves than when we are inconsistent." (Oscar Wilde)

***

She slowly opened a window, tracing her fingers along its dilapidated, yellow frame. An incredibly sharp frost and a howling, bitter wind of an upcoming snowstorm greeted her. Ignoring the weather, she took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh air. Then she gracefully extended her hand and a thick snowflake fell on her palm.

Movitriss trembled.

__

"You shouldn't have stayed that late with your friends yesterday."

"Probably not." Kyro agreed. "…But I simply had to say goodbye to them. I'm not gonna see them for long, right? Gods! Coming to think about it… I've never been outside the Promised Land before. I'm so excited about this entire journey! …Aren't you!?"

The memory of his cheerful voice sent shivers down her spine.

(He was only twenty, for the gods' sake…) She had never felt so angry before. (Just a kid… Why did he have to die!?)

She hit the window's frame with her fist. The blow was hard and she nearly whimpered, raising her injured hand to her mouth. The physical pain made her dizzy. The sensation lasted only for a few seconds, though. Then it was replaced with something else… something much more painful.

She was doing her best to kill her feelings, but it didn't work very well…

(Don't try to pretend. You miss them. Both of them… Sephiroth… What made you go away? Did I do something wrong? Did I say something improper?)

Movitriss lowered her hand, which was still rolled into a fist.

Actually, he escaped like a coward, she thought. (And Aeris accompanied him out of cowardice, too. She didn't want to be left behind, she was afraid of staying alone…)

(The bastard probably thinks I'll be able to forget him easily… And, undoubtedly, he doesn't remember me anymore…)

but still… I love him

(Damn it! I'm so pathetic. I hope he's all right. Why does he insist on being so stubborn sometimes? Why did he try to run away? And… what's wrong with Valagar? Why hasn't he returned yet? What stopped him? …I'm all by myself now… lost in the middle of nowhere…)

There was a firm knock on the door and the hinges cracked. Movitriss turned her head, narrowing her golden eyes. She prayed that it would be Valagar. However, it was just a village girl, her temporal servant. She greeted the girl with a curt nod of her head.

"How are you feeling today, milady?"

"Don't call me 'milady'." Movitriss weakly protested, because reasoning with the simple-minded girl was like talking to a wall. "I've already told you my name…"

The girl walked up to the window and closed it, paying no attention to the fact that Movitriss would have gladly left it open.

"Go to bed, milady." in spite of the girl's polite voice, it was an order. Movitriss obediently took place on the edge of her bed. "No, milady. I didn't tell you to sit down. I told you to lie down."

She did as she was ordered, since she felt a little bit tired from standing at the window.

"You're still very weak, but your wounds heal very fast." the girl went on. "Honestly, I was sure you were going to die. It's a miracle you can already walk… Well, I don't care what the others say…" she definitely lacked manners "…but I think you're a witch. Or a priestess. Because the gods definitely favor you for some reason."

Yeah, right, Movitriss thought. (Like hell they do…)

"…I guess your injuries will disappear without a trace…"

Of course they would, Movitriss lazily thought, absently playing with her red hair. (Though not because I'm a 'witch'. It's because Sandalya's astral energy is helping me.)

***

Waking up in Aeris' arms was definitely the last thing he had ever dreamt of. And yet… he was right there, resting in her warm embrace.

hey… not bad…

"Sephiroth…" the woman was, of course, crying.

He blinked a few times, trying to understand what was going on. They were still underground. Surrounded by a few Räelans, Aeris sat on the floor, holding the man's head in her lap. Sephiroth met her clouded gaze. The whole situation was rather more amusing than threatening, he quickly decided.

__

"I healed your wounds." the female alien said. _"You can thank me later. Just get up."_

"I'm not getting up." Sephiroth said, mischievously narrowing his eyes at Aeris. "And if that's a dream…" he suddenly wanted to laugh and joke "…don't wake me up."

"Oh, stop it…" she frowned, though a small blush crept up her cheeks. "You could've died… I was worried sick…"

He wordlessly sat up and looked down at his chest. His ribs, once broken, were perfectly fine. He noticed that Aeris had completely crumpled his shirt. It was wet with her tears, stained with his blood and totally messed up.

The corners of Sephiroth's mouth twitched.

__

"What are you waiting for? You came to talk, right? I can take you to our captain."

"Yeah…" there was a subtle mockery in his thoughts. _"I almost forgot…"_ he shrugged, standing up.

Aeris did the same thing. Looking around, she bit her upper lip in a mixture of confusion and embarrassment. (What happened to Valagar?) The doubt was nearly killing her.

__

"WHAT?" Sephiroth froze, silently turning in the Räelan's direction.

__

"She must have killed him." the answer came_ "When we found you, he was already dead."_

Sephiroth mentally shook his head. _"No way. She couldn't have done such a thing…"_

"As far as I'm concerned, it was an act of self-defense."

"Sephiroth?" the change in the man's expression didn't went beyond Aeris' notice "What's wrong?"

He measured her with a calm, questioning stare. "Aeris… what happened exactly after I'd lost my consciousness? I'm asking because…" it was a rare thing to see him hesitate "…Valagar is dead."

Aeris turned white all of a sudden and for a second Sephiroth was sure that she was going to faint or to be sick.

…no

Her gaze instantly sunk to her delicate, small fingers. She stared at them in disgust.

"I… I…" she stammered. "I… killed a man with my hands…?"

Sephiroth stirred and a small gasp escaped his lips.

(But… she's an angel… she's not capable of a murder… is she?)

She appeared to be immersed in some kind of a trance. It didn't look very well.

"Aeris…" he grasped her arms and shook her gently. Their faces were merely inches apart. "Listen to me…"

"Don't you understand!? I killed a man with my own hands!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. Overwhelmed with sorrow and anger, she noticed neither Sephiroth's frown, nor the hesitation in his slightly green eyes.

And suddenly he pulled her into a tight embrace and before Aeris could realize what she was doing, she felt herself resting her head on his shoulder. And, as if yanked by some invisible string, she started to weep uncontrollably.

"Shhh…" he said, lowering his lips to her ear. "Everything's going to be fine."

***

Nothing's going to be fine. I ruined a person's life. I killed Valagar. But I didn't mean it! I didn't want it!

Oh, but you did - a small, traitorous voice in the back of her conscience said. Actually, you killed him in cold blood - don't you remember?

But… but… it just happened! It's not my fault! I lost control over my body and…

Didn't you want to loose that control?

I had no choice! I was sure Sephiroth would die because of him!

Oh, the mocking voice said. So you wanted revenge, then? How sweet, how noble…

But… I have thought… I have…

On the contrary, my dear. You have nothing to excuse you.

***

__

A headless body of a child lay on the ground. Sephiroth stood next to him with a sword in his hand. He calmly brushed a few strands of his short, silver hair aside, watching the crimson river of blood flow.

There had been a combat between the two children. Well, not a real combat, just a regular sparring ordered by one of the scientists. And it just… happened. Before Sephiroth could even pause to think, he had killed the other boy. And, actually, he did it in a very spectacular way. Blood was nearly everywhere.

"Sephiroth." the voice of his father was not the most important thing right now.

(Did I just… kill him?) - the thought was… sickening. (But I was sure… I promised myself… that I would never lower myself to such level… I'm still human… right?)

"What's wrong, boy?" Hojo spoke in Wutaian. [author's note: he's Wutaian, or so I believe]_ The soft melody of this language deeply contrasted with the scientist's sharp, commanding voice._

"I didn't have to kill him." the child's large, green eyes were dispassionate, nearly apathetic, but that was just a mask the boy usually wore; Hojo knew well about that.

"So what?" the man snarled. "He was merely an experiment, just like you. And yet he proved to be much weaker, so he didn't deserve to live. No failure ever does."

Sephiroth's delicate face didn't betray any emotion. "But it was just unnecessary." Questioning the scientist's words wasn't exactly the wisest thing to do and even the boy was surprised with this sudden courage.

"And…? Who cares?" Hojo shrugged and knelt down in front of his son, forcing the boy to meet his cold gaze. "Look, it's a cruel word…"

yes, it is

"…in which only the strongest ones will survive. There's nothing wrong with killing."

nothing wrong… what if he's right…?

Hojo kept talking. Sephiroth listened, thinking very hard at the same time.

(Actually… it feels… quite nice… to be… not a victim… for the first time…)

"Do you feel sorry for him? Don't make me laugh, Sephiroth. Don't act as if you actually had feelings. You were born to kill for ShinRa and you still have to train very hard to become the best fighter this company's ever had. Believe me, that's the only thing you shall worry about." Hojo paused, getting back to his feet. "And Sephiroth…?" The boy looked up. "…Don't disappoint me."

***

'Everything is going to be fine' - these were the words he knew he had been supposed to say. He had heard them many times on the battlefield, when the most compassionate, sensitive officers had tried to console the youngest, shocked recruits who had just killed for the first time… but these were just empty words for him, words that were almost entirely devoid of meaning. Right now, he had only said them because he knew Aeris needed warmth and consolation. He could easily see how much she was suffering.

And he felt bad for Aeris, not for Valagar. The old man was dead. (Dead… So what? Did I know him very well? No. Did I like him? Not really… All right, so maybe I respected his wisdom and his general lack of prejudices, but it still doesn't make me miss him very much… Because… what should I care about people that are completely indifferent to me?)

Did my father… really manage to kill some of my emotions…?

(Then again… am I now supposed to feel anything but grief for Aeris…?)

He shook the bitter thoughts off, concentrating on the woman in his arms instead.

"You saved my life, Aeris." he said, slightly pulling away. "I would've died if it hadn't been for what you did."

It's as simple as that…

She slowly raised her head. Her eyes were swollen and red.

"That's why I did it… I had no choice but to…"

Defend you? Avenge you?

"You did the most human thing." he said and she was surprised to hear how soft his voice can sound. They still stood very close to each other. "Besides, I was a very courageous thing to do… You didn't run away for your life… It's admirable."

"That's what _you_ think…" she opposed weakly.

"Am I wrong, then?" he asked very seriously.

"If I had run away, he would be alive now…" Aeris' voice trailed off.

And yet, instead of giving up and escaping, I decided to stay, she thought. (And I guess we can both say that… that I sacrificed something very important for you… my soul… my innocence… But I guess you're worth the sacrifice. And I will face the consequence of my actions… even if the guilt eventually devours me…)

She bit her lip. "Do you still like me? Now, while I'm a murderer? When I'm no longer innocent?"

Funny, Sephiroth thought. (I've never actually told her that I love her… Anyway… does she expect me to say something trivial like 'we all make mistakes'…? It would sound very cynical in _my _lips, wouldn't it?)

He looked straight into her green eyes. "And who am _I_ to condemn you?" Aeris held her breath. For the first time Sephiroth was being so sincere and emotional with her. "You are cheerful and beautiful…" he said after a while. "…Please, don't let yourself drown in guilt. I can't let this happen to the woman I love."

Aeris' heart skipped a beat. For the first time in her life she experienced such happiness. It was next to pure ecstasy. A warm tear of relief trickled down her reddened cheek.

gods!

From the look on his face she knew he had the intention to kiss her, so she gently threw her head back, not being able to resist the temptation, wishing she had a little bit more experience when it came to such things.

__

"Humans are so strange." the voice in Sephiroth's head said. _"First she's immersed in grief and a few seconds later she's in ecstasy…"_

Sephiroth never did what he had been about to do. He just shook his head, looking at the Räelan with some humorous sparks in his green irises. Feeling that nothing was happening - and pretty much disappointed - Aeris finally opened her eyes.

"We still have company." the man explained, making a gesture in the aliens' direction.

Aeris felt like saying: "screw this, let's proceed!", but she quickly composed herself. She only rolled one of her hands into a fist, hoping that Sephiroth wouldn't hear her sigh. The amused smirk on the man's face told her that he actually did.

"Come on, let's follow them out of here." he said. "We'll finish this… talk… later."

***

__

"If you stay here, everyone will suffer."

The captain turned out to be female. She was neither very tall, nor muscular, and yet appeared to be quite powerful; no doubt her subordinates respected her. Sephiroth stood right in front of her with one of his arms touching his chin and the other one resting across his waist.

They were alone in a large, hermetic chamber. And, since they both talked without speaking, the humming of air-conditioning was the only sound they could hear.

__

"You wanted to say: the humans of Sandalya will suffer…" the captain said slyly.

__

"They have the right to live. Why won't you respect it?" Sephiroth stated with equal force.

__

"Have you ever considered our reasons? Our_ right to live?"_

"I understand what you're implying…" Sephiroth shook his head, making his unbraided hair dance in the artificial wind. _"…But… do you really want to wage war against the Cetra? They will most probably support the humans."_

"You're not a Cetra and you can't be sure of that. Besides, I can already sense that you are hesitating." she paused_ "Please, tell me just one thing… Why are you afraid of me? You regard us all with distrust. What have we done so far?"_

Sephiroth didn't answer.

__

"One of my kind…" the Räelan slowly started, obviously struggling to read Sephiroth's mind. _"Fooled you into living a lie… Made you hate the humans more than anything… Actually… I can sense you never liked them very much… the society… Such hatred… I can sense it's almost gone by now… but where did it come from…?"_

Suddenly the Räelan's lavender eyes widened in anger.

__

"This can't be…"

"Stop it." Sephiroth said quietly, shaking his head, briefly closing his eyes. _"I don't want to remember."_

"Impossible." the alien was shocked, sickened, disgusted. _"They did such things to one of their kind…" _she raised from her 'chair'. _"Your father…"_

She slowly walked up to him - slowly for a Räelan, that is - and delicately raised his chin with one of her 'hands'. He didn't know why he allowed her to do this familiar gesture.

__

"Why do you want to defend them, child? After everything they've done… You fully realize what they're capable of… And you still stand on their side? You still want to be… human?"

He moved the warm tentacle away and met the aliens' deep gaze.

__

"Maybe I just want to be… better. Better than them. Don't ask me why, though…"

"I'm sorry for you, child."

"Cut it off." he said coldly, still not lowering his eyes. He was furious with the alien for bringing up the painful subject and he practically loathed her piteous gaze. _"Save your compassion for the ones you plan to kill."_

The alien didn't let him change the topic so easily. _"Why siding with the humans? Answer me."_

"These are not the same people who…"

tortured me

Sephiroth shrugged, still being able to control his emotions. _"I have no reason to hate them."_

"And also no reason to defend them." the immediate riposte came.

"Than what should I do?" he hissed through clenched teeth, breaking the silence in the chamber for the first time. "Sit with my arms forded? Spend my entire life contemplating my previous glory, wishing it was back? Cry over my failures? I must act, do something!"

I must do something or else I'll go insane… Thinking doesn't seem to serve me very well…

__

"I see." the Räelan slowly answered. _"Yes, it makes perfect sense."_

"Enough of your games." Sephiroth interrupted her rather unceremoniously. _"Well, now it's time for you to answer me a few questions. Did you really attack the members of the Cetra Council?"_

"How should I know? The entire group was killed. We only found the bodies and a trail of blood leading to a small human village."

"And…?" Sephiroth held his breath. (Movitriss… If something happened to her… My feelings have nothing to do with this… but I don't want her to die…)

__

"The scouts left them alone and came back for further orders."

__

"I can see that you hasn't decided yet…"

The Räelan hissed in a way that was an equivalent of subtle laugh. _"Indeed… Child, it has been an amusing conversation… I would've never guessed that you're such a dreamer… You're so intelligent, and yet so naive and unwise… Do you really think the world can be changed for the better? Them you should be more careful. Well, society often forgives the criminal but it never forgives the dreamer…"_ she was serious. Sephiroth answered her with his usual, cynical smile. _"I shall talk with my officers now. Tomorrow… Tomorrow you will know my final answer."_

***

At least they were tactful enough to leave us alone, Aeris thought. (I still can't believe they let us spend the night in their starship. Are we entirely safe? Besides, I wish our bed was more comfortable…)

Actually, it was not a real bed, but a large, steel platform horizontally attached to one of the chamber's walls. Fortunately, it was covered with some soft, synthetic material that could eventually serve as a sheet. Obviously, the Räelans used no bedding. The chamber was warm, air-conditioned, so there was no need for blankets, but the lack of pillows was slightly irritating. Aeris had quickly solved this problem by using her coat.

Sephiroth lay next to her, only a meter away, stretched on his back with his hands clasped under his head and his legs crossed. His eyes were closed at the moment, but he wasn't asleep. He seemed to be irritated and absent-minded.

"What's wrong?" Aeris repeated her question.

"Nothing… it's just that… I can hear them thinking… everybody at once…"

"The Räelans…?" still lying on her stomach, Aeris lifted her chest of the ground, supporting her weight with her elbows.

"Mhm… Their thoughts and emotions are not very coherent, but still… I think I won't be able to take a nap tonight." he sighed.

"Ah." she said and fell silent.

She couldn't take her eyes off him, since, as far as she was concerned, he was the pure embodiment of beauty. Besides, it was much better to stare at him than to think about Valagar's death. However, there was also something else that bothered her very deeply. She opened her mouth so speak… and hesitated. Her unspoken question hung in the air. Sephiroth noticed a slight change in Aeris' breathing and opened his incredibly calm eyes.

"What is it?"

She wordlessly rolled onto her back, fixing her gaze on the ceiling.

"Sephiroth… If they decide to stay here and declare war on the humans, whose side will you be on?"

His expression suddenly changed, but Aeris wasn't even able to notice that. He could nearly hear the female Räelan say: _"Why do you want to defend them, child? After everything they've done… You fully realize what they're capable of… And you still stand on their side?"_

(I had these doubts from the beginning… Why did she have to voice them…?)

__

"You still want to be… human?" (The surprise in her thoughts… the compassion… Everything was real. And then…) _"I'm sorry for you, child."_

(Oh, how I hate such words…)

"You already know the answer, don't you? You wouldn't have asked instead…"

She closed her eyes, lowering her hands to her waist. She nearly trembled. "You're not sure anymore… aren't you…" it wasn't a question.

They still didn't look at each other. Sephiroth's eyebrows were furrowed in pain.

"I wish things were entirely black or white… It would've spared us all the difficult choices…"

End of Chapter 14

***

Author's Notes: Poor Sephy… I'll never stop torturing him… What happens next? 

Maybe the aliens will just leave to find a different planet… because if the war starts, Aeris and Sephiroth will die as its first martyrs… Keep in mind that the female Räelan hasn't decided yet… (Whereas _I_ have ^__^ …but it's still a secret!) Next chapter is going to be very important.

And when it comes to the romantic part of this story… Will Sephiroth and Aeris _ever_ kiss!? (Yes, I know I'm a very mean author! *grins* They ended up in the same bed and they did absolutely nothing… *keeps grinning* Mwahahaha!) Will Sephiroth and Movitriss talk? Will they find happiness… in life or death? (_'Or death?' _Yeah, I can see that joy in your eyes - you think I'm gonna kill her, right? Quit dreaming… :-p )

Please, wait patiently for the next chapter and don't forget to review this one! Feel free to criticize - just let it be some constructive criticism, okay? Your reviews really make me work much faster!


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